Even though my mother had told me growing up that, 'If you win, nobody cares what color you are,' that wasn't necessarily true in the N.F.L.

That's the one regret I have in all the years that I've played professional sports, that I didn't win a championship in the N.F.L. And that's why you play on any level of team sports: you want to win a championship as part of a team.

Throughout my career, I was never able to relax; I always had to go on the field with another responsibility. I felt like I was playing, not just for my team, but for my race.

When I was coming up as a kid, there were programs that kept me out of trouble and on the straight and narrow in South Central Los Angeles, and I always felt that when I got to a stage where I could provide similar opportunities to kids then I would do that.

You can't have enough good football players.

I'm not an athlete, I'm a baseball player.

People assume that, as an NBA athlete, you can get access to any kind of sneaker you want, when in reality, it's hard to get the exclusive releases or shoes from the past and feel confident they're authentic.

Through the years I have received my share of recognition for efforts in the fields of sports, the arts, the struggle for full citizenship for the Negro people, labor's rights and the fight for peace.