Top 15 Quotes & Sayings by Lenny Wilkens

Explore popular quotes and sayings by an American athlete Lenny Wilkens.
Last updated on December 22, 2024.
Lenny Wilkens

Leonard Randolph Wilkens is an American former basketball player and coach in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He has been inducted three times into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, first in 1989 as a player, as a coach in 1998, and in 2010 as part of the 1992 United States Olympic "Dream Team," for which he was an assistant coach. In 1996, Wilkens was named to the NBA 50th Anniversary Team, and in 2021 he was named to the NBA 75th Anniversary Team. In addition, in 2022 he was also named to the list of the 15 Greatest Coaches in NBA History, being the only person to be in both NBA 75th season celebration list as player and coach. He is also a 2006 inductee into the College Basketball Hall of Fame.

I worry about the things I can affect, and the things I have no control over I move by.
Intimidation doesn't last very long.
If you fail the first time that's just a chance to start over again.
The American dream, to me, means having the opportunity to achieve, because I don't think you should be guaranteed anything other than opportunity.
If you want it, you've got to give it.
We should never discourage young people from dreaming dreams.
I never really had a chance to know the players individually... I thought when they were on the floor, they worked hard. But I never really got to know them.
If you can't go through it, find a way around it. Don't spend all your time banging your head. — © Lenny Wilkens
If you can't go through it, find a way around it. Don't spend all your time banging your head.
I told Zollie Volchok we needed an ultrasound machine and he asked me why we needed music in the locker room.
I learned early that if I wanted to achieve anything in life, I'd have to do it myself. I learned that I had to be accountable.
The most important quality I look for in a player is accountability.  You've got to be accountable for who you are.  It's too easy to blame things on someone else. — © Lenny Wilkens
The most important quality I look for in a player is accountability. You've got to be accountable for who you are. It's too easy to blame things on someone else.
Show people how to have success and then you can push their expectations up.
Meadowlark Lemon's book Trust Your Next Shot is written by a remarkable person. I have had the pleasure of knowing Meadowlark for quite some time. He has given back to his community quite generously in addition to serving as an outstanding role model for young people. Meadowlark's career has allowed him to touch people's lives everywhere and I am so proud to be his friend. God has certainly touched his life.
If you can't go through it, find a way around it. Don't spend all your time banging your head against it.
I always felt that I was as good as the next person, and I didn't care what they had.
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