Penny Hardaway Quotes

I got injured at the Olympic Trials in 2000. I could not jump. I could not walk on my leg properly. I couldn't bend my knee. I couldn't straighten it.

I've got no hamstring in the middle. I'm basically running on two hamstrings on my right leg and three on the other. That injury has probably changed my whole career. I've been compromised from the age of 19.

I lived on being a quick player and my hamstring was breaking every time I made a quick move. I wondered what the hell was going on.

My knee was torn up. I tore every ligament in my knee. It was a very, very bad injury. I had to do what the doctors told me to do, and I did that. The next year, I came back and led the league in rushing.

I don't believe I throw quite the same as before I was injured.

A lot of my career I'm out of the gym, I'm injured and I'm blown up.

The operations were big ones, so I knew it'd take a lot of hard work. It's hard, you know? You're in the gym for hours on end doing strengthening exercises, and that's just so you are able to start running again. You can't even think about getting on the pitch to start with.

My knee bends only to a 60 degree angle. Normally, like on my right leg, my heel can touch my glute if I just pull my leg back. On my left side, there's still a big percentage missing. That has made me change my style in the ring.

I've got to take care of the knee to finish the season healthy.

Ask any athlete: We all hurt at times. I'm asking my body to go through seven different tasks. To ask it not to ache would be too much.

The physio side probably stemmed from the knocks I got as a player.

I've decided to listen to my doctors and get the procedure I need on my knee. USA Basketball said I had to do what was best for me. They want me to be obviously as healthy as possible so I can continue to play this game at a high level.

I was able to do Classics, the U.S. national championships and the Pan American Games and feel like I improved with each meet, but I was still struggling with a lot of residual pain from the two surgeries.

The return is one of the hardest shots to make when you come back from injury.

I hurt my left knee playing left tackle. I had surgery on my right knee.

If I could change on thing about myself, I would: Have better knees. Mine are shot because of injuries. You're only as good as your legs, whether you're an athlete or an actor.

Am I ever going to be able to play football again? What's going on with my career? I was just thinking things like that. You've got tears going down your eyes. You've got your trainers right there and my parents right there. I was just thinking, "Is this it?" I didn't know what a knee injury was. I'd never felt pain like that.

I didn't think I was going to play that day. I'd have to thank the training staff for getting me on the field that day. They made a bigger deal than I thought it was.

Even when I was young, playing college football, and I injured my knee, I bounced right back.

The knee just isn't 100 percent. It's hard to be out there when you know that you can't play at your best and could potentially make it worse.

There have not been many occasions when I have bowled pain free and generally you are not 100 percent.

I've played in Test matches before after injury without first playing a county game or warm-up of some sort.

Coping with injuries is always difficult for athletes because all we want to do is, basically, to have our best performances unhindered.

I got injuries already from fighting from guys that have been cheating. And you're never the same when you get injured like that. I mean, look at my hand. It's broken, it's got 16 screws in it. I'm not as strong in this hand. It just affects you, especially this body being my livelihood.

One thing the fans got to understand is that I missed two years, and we took it really, really slow, and we made sure everything was good, and my foot has been great.