- Press Maravich: [to his players at practice] I am not spending valuable hours of my life just to teach you boys to throw a ball through an iron hoop. This is a way of life, I want players to think. Work, sweat, challenge themselves, discipline themselves, because anything else you boys it just isn't worth it, to anyone. The problem with you boys is simple. You're all a bunch of dummies 'cause you think you know it all. Give me the ball.
- [He draws a small circle on the ball]
- Press Maravich: You see this circle? The size of this circle represents everything that I know about basketball. But the size of this ball represents everything about the game that has never been dicovered.
- [He puts a small dot on the ball]
- Press Maravich: This dot is what you know, combined.
- [throws the ball back to the player]
- Press Maravich: Now if you'll forget about the girls and cars and listen to me you can accomplish things that you never thought were possible. I don't care if you're short, slow, tall, or small. You can play with the best of them if you'll dedicate yourself to becoming better.
- Pete as adult: When I was in the eight grade, all I wanted to be was a great basketball player like my dad. At 5'2" and 90 pounds who would believe me. I guess only my dad and I could believe it in the beginning.
- Press Maravich: When you think about it, a dream is nothing more than a big challenge you place on yourself.
- Press Maravich: You know Pete, you got something that the richest man in the world couldn't buy: a gift.
- Pete Maravich: [Giving his report on his dream to the class] My dream is to get a college scholarship to play basketball.
- [Class laughs]
- Pete Maravich: And I'm gonna be the man to make a million dollars playing pro basketball.
- [Class laughs agian]
- Pete Maravich: Also I wanna play on a championship team and get a big ring that says I was one of the greatest basketball players of all time.
- [Class laughs again and he hands it to the teacher]
- Press Maravich: You know, a guy once said I had a loose screw when I told him I wanted to play in the pros.
- Pete Maravich: He did?
- Press Maravich: Of course, he never took the time to see me play either.
- Press Maravich: [after completing the drill] You thought you could do it. I knew I could. Confidence.
- Pete as adult: I remember like it was yesterday. It was the beginning of an incredible journey; the year that would change my life forever and chart the course of my destiny.
- Press Maravich: You know I was watching Gene Kelly last night and it struck me that a good basketball player can make up for a lot if he has hands as fast as a gunfighter.
- Pete as adult: [Last lines while the crowd is cheering for him] The words that came expressed how I felt to them, I was now aired to a dream, a dream that was now becoming a reality. Pap was right, the fans did want me to give them a magical moment, to let their imaginations soar, and believe that anything was possible. Win or lose, they did come back to see a floppy sock kid with the best of them.
- Sandy: [after loosing the game] Hey Pete, I thought you did great tonight.
- Pete Maravich: We lost.
- Sandy: Well you can't win all the time.
- Pete Maravich: When you lose that's all the people remember.
- Sandy: Well I still think you did great.
- Press Maravich: Kennedy will build houses on the moon by 1970 and you know why, cause he's got...
- Press Maravich, Helen Maravich: Confidence.
- Helen Maravich: Let him eat his breakfast, Press.
- Coach Pendleton: Walker how old are you?
- Walker: 18.
- Coach Pendleton: You wanna live to be 19?
- Walker: Yeah.
- Coach Pendleton: THEN DO WHAT I TELL YOU.
- Crowd: PISTOL, PISTOL, PISTOL
- [after settling their differences]
- Pete Maravich: Hey, Buddy!
- [beat]
- Pete Maravich: I still think you're a butthead.
- Buddy Pendleton: Me too.