I've missed more than 9000 shots in my career. I've lost almost 300 games. 26 times, I've been trusted to take the game winning shot and missed. I've failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed.

Obstacles don't have to stop you. If you run into a wall, don't turn around and give up. Figure out how to climb it, go through it, or work around it.

I never looked at the consequences of missing a big shot…when you think about the consequences you always think of a negative result.

I know fear is an obstacle for some people, but it is an illusion to me…. Failure always made me try harder next time.

I can accept failure, everyone fails at something. But I can't accept not trying.

You have to expect things of yourself before you can do them.

There is no "i" in team but there is in win.

Some people want it to happen, some wish it would happen, others make it happen.

People can fly. Some people fly higher than others, that's all.

I've never been afraid to fail.

I've always believed that if you put in the work, the results will come. I don't do things half-heartedly. Because I know if I do, then I can expect half-hearted results.

I play to win, whether during practice or a real game. And I will not let anything get in the way of me and my competitive enthusiasm to win.

I can never stop working hard. Each day I feel that I have to improve. Hard work…Determination…I gotta keep pushing myself.

I'm retired 99.9%. Of course, there always is that .1%. 1999-02-18

I'm back. Announcing his return to the Bulls (1995-03-18)

There is no such thing as a perfect basketball player, and I don't believe there is only one greatest player either. Everyone plays in different eras. I built my talents on the shoulders of someone else's talent. I believe greatness is an evolutionary process that changes and evolves era to era. Without Julius Erving, David Thompson, Walter Davis, and Elgin Baylor there would never have been a Michael Jordan. I evolved from them.

Talent wins games, but teamwork and intelligence wins championships.

If you accept the expectations of others, especially negative ones, then you never will change the outcome.

I've reached the pinnacle of my career. I just feel that I don't have anything else to prove. Announcing his retirement from the Bulls (1993-10-06).

You can practice shooting eight hours a day, but if your technique is wrong, then all you become is very good at shooting the wrong way. Get the fundamentals down and the level of everything you do will rise.

My attitude is that if you push me towards something that you think is a weakness, then I will turn that perceived weakness into a strength.