Top 108 Quotes & Sayings by Masai Ujiri

Honestly... I've never felt pressure working in basketball. There's no pressure at all. If it doesn't work, it doesn't work.

I've spent a lot of time in the United States and Canada and I am grateful for the opportunities that I've been given by people, and the game of basketball, and the NBA.

As an NBA executive, I'm always looking for untapped potential. As a proud native of Nigeria, I believe that Africa is one of the world's greatest resources in that area.

I wasn't a great player, but I got a lot out of the game. I saw the world and made many lifelong friends.

Just because someone lives in a hut, that doesn't mean that isn't a good person, that that person can't do better, that person isn't capable of being great. And just because it's a hut - whatever that means - doesn't mean it's not a home.

You need some luck in life and I have been lucky with God's help.

Be very proud of your name and where you come from. It's so important. Say it loud and clear for everybody to hear.

Our job is to find players younger, where they are able to play from 11 years old and grow up playing the game. Rather than, you start playing when you are 17 or 18 and you don't get the opportunity to do anything with your career.

We all have the things that we all have to work on, and things we have to get better at.

We all have weaknesses.

Growing up in Africa, I always dreamt big.

We can say potential all we want, but at the end of the day, sports is about winning.

Being a good teammate means looking out for our neighbours, friends and the people we work with.

This is a team sport, a team game.

When I started Giants of Africa, I envisioned providing African youth access to the game and empowering them to achieve their greatest potential.

Manute Bol was one of the guys who taught me to be bold. To be fierce. To speak intelligently, and speak like you belong.

We have something very special happening in Toronto and Drake is a big part of that.

He is so true to himself, and so good to other people. Even during tough conversations, I have never worried about him. Because I know Dwane Casey is going to come back tomorrow to try to be better, and I feel the same way. I try to be better, and so I try to be like him that way.

I carry the continent of Africa on my shoulders proudly.

Most kids in Africa don't start playing basketball until they are 13 or 14 years old. This puts them at a disadvantage because they lack the instincts and must work harder to develop the skills and habits formed at an early age.

I always say in my camps in Africa, in everything we do, 'My name is Masai and I'm from Nigeria.' My name is Masai and I'm from Nigeria. It's plain and simple. If you're from La Loche or you are from Toronto you should be proud of it.

I value my staff and I believe in hiring people who are smarter than myself.

You have to figure out that balance between younger players and veteran players, star players, and All-Star players, really a team effort. And then you have to be lucky.

We have to inspire people and give them a sense of hope. We need to bring people along, not ridicule and tear them down.

As leaders, I think we have to give people in many places a chance to have success, not continue to put those people down.

People hear 'Africa' and they think about charitable commercials, or safari tours and animals. It's our responsibility to help change that perspective.

Every man, they say, 'oh my wife is my boss.' So why can't they be bosses at work?

The truth is that Africa is like everywhere else. There are poor areas, there are rich areas, there is a middle class. Some of those areas are bigger in one country than another, and some countries have real problems that they're working through. But there's great people, good people and a small percentage of bad people - just like everywhere else.

Most young kids can't figure out how to shoot.

Every day is different. There's always, as we call it in the NBA, a 'drama,' a team's drama, there's always something.

This is my hobby. Reaching out, getting to know other people's cultures, traveling to other people's countries.

For me, it's always been about Toronto. I love it here. My family loves it here. My wife loves it here, which is important.

We have to make Toronto - we have to - we have to make Toronto the best atmosphere in the NBA.

I memorized every line in Michael Jordan's 'Come Fly with Me.'

I'll always have a special place in my heart for the city of Denver and the Nuggets as an organization.

Scouting is like CIA work and investigative work. You create a lot of stuff and try a lot of stuff. Some works and some doesn't. I try to get creative.

We play sports to win.

Giants of Africa holds such a special place in my heart. It's not just another non-profit organization - this is personal. What started as a dream to give back to the country that raised me has since blossomed into an intercontinental mission to uplift youth across the diaspora, and shed light on the greatest part of Africa: its people.

I'm nervous about everything I do with Africa. You almost want it to go good all the time, and you don't want to disappoint.

Africa has proven to produce some of the greatest athletes in the world, and it's a joy to be able to help grow that talent and create a space for African youth to learn.

I've studied the game in every different aspect that I can.

Basketball without Borders made me who I am and it's just something that is such a huge part of my life.

You go for the best talent available, wherever it is. You fish it out. That's how I've scouted all my career. Doesn't matter where it is - international, domestic, college, anywhere.

A player from Africa who wins championships? That's powerful.

When you talk about goals, you look at your team last year and you want to move the meter a little bit. You don't want to go back and be the same team that you were last year, so we have tried to get better in some ways.

To give women more opportunity, women's empowerment is very, very close to my heart.

I was probably the best cherry picker in the history of African basketball. I got so many dunks, it was crazy.

Giving back to our communities is huge.

Every GM will tell you it's an instinct. It's an instinct to be patient, to react, or act, or not to do anything at all. It just comes. What I can say is you must have a plan and a goal and a way to do things. At the end of the day, it's an instinct. Sometimes it's good. Sometimes it's bad.

As you can probably tell, the push to develop talent in Africa is personal. I grew up there. I played there. I know how much talent there is. We have to concentrate on building facilities, establishing successful leagues and finding investors to help young players.

I don't know how much of an impact I can have, but you hope you can have some.

Winning influences, it helps, it gets the kids. Winning makes an impact.

Nelson Mandela saw the potential of Africa and dedicated his life to changing the world in which we live while inspiring a movement towards social justice, peace and equal human rights.

The natural thing in Africa is to start playing soccer at 8 or 9. You go outside and you play like kids play basketball here, and you grow a feel for the game. In Africa, the kids start playing basketball at 16 or 17 or 18, and when they get an opportunity to come here, they have been playing for only one or two years.

Everyone mentions the fact that I am the first African GM. I think it means nothing unless you impact people in Africa. That's what we're trying to try to continue to do - impact the game and make an impact on people over there.

It doesn't all have to be about giving money. Sometimes it's a smile that changes the life of one little kid.

Kids in Africa start kicking a ball when they are six or seven years old, if not younger. It's like baseball, basketball and football in America. If you're talented, people will find you. That's what happened with soccer. The number of academies has grown rapidly, and people are really into it.

It's a great thing that the NBA has done in Africa to develop the game.

God doesn't put anyone someplace permanently. I am a living testimony to that.

If you have a great culture and you're progressing the right way to win I think players will always want to come.