“The natural thing in Africa is to start playing soccer at 8 or 9. You ...” — Masai Ujiri Quote

“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.”

“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.”

“I always try to do more than one or two takes if we have the time.”

“I probably get one or two days off every five or six weeks.”

“Sometimes I play as simply as possible, in one or two touches. But I also make bad decisions, I make mistakes, and I try too-complicated things.”