Kobe Bryant

“One thing you gotta know about me is I have absolutely no filter. I have no problem saying what the hell I think of someone.”

“The only thing I'm afraid of is bees. I don't like bees. I'm allergic to them.”

“I have self-doubt. I have insecurity. I have fear of failure. I have nights when I show up at the arena and I'm like, 'My back hurts, my feet hurt, my knees hurt. I don't have it. I just wan...”

“In an individual sport, yes, you have to win titles. Baseball's different. But basketball, hockey? One person can control the tempo of a game, can completely alter the momentum of a series....”

“The Black Mamba collection of watches is me: It is my alter ego, so to speak. As I mentioned before, it is sharp, cutting edge and sleek which are characteristics I try to apply when I'm out...”

“It's different from being 21 and you think there's endless amount of opportunities. At 33, the ending is much, much closer.”

“I've played with IVs before, during and after games. I've played with a broken hand, a sprained ankle, a torn shoulder, a fractured tooth, a severed lip, and a knee the size of a softball. I...”

“I'm here. I'm not going anywhere. No matter what the injury - unless it's completely debilitating - I'm going to be the same player I've always been. I'll figure it out. I'll make some tweak...”

“Winning takes precedence over all. There's no gray area. No almosts.”

“At the end of 2003, my game was complete. Shooting, defense, using the dribble, transition, midrange stuff was all there. Then it was about fine-tuning and trying to improve in each area.”

“Twitter is great to connect with fans and be transparent. I enjoy that aspect about it. But really, I'm still trying to figure it out.”

“If there were camera phones back in the day, the biggest athletes in the world would have had a lot of explaining to do.”

“You want me to own a team and deal with these rich, spoiled stubborn athletes, and try to get them to perform? No thank you.”

“My parents are my backbone. Still are. They're the only group that will support you if you score zero or you score 40.”

“The topic of leadership is a touchy one. A lot of leaders fail because they don't have the bravery to touch that nerve or strike that chord. Throughout my years, I haven't had that fear.”

“I don't think a coach becomes the right coach until he wins a championship.”

“There's been a lot of talk of me being a one-man show but that's simply not the case. We win games when I score 40 points and we've won when I score 10.”

“I'll do whatever it takes to win games, whether it's sitting on a bench waving a towel, handing a cup of water to a teammate, or hitting the game-winning shot.”

“It never bothered me when people would say, 'You only win championships because you're playing with Shaq.' It bothered me when he said it.”

“It's disgusting, but my father taught me when your mouth gets dry, just suck the sweat out of your own jersey. There's no bravado to any of it; it's just a disgusting little trick.”