NBA quotes of the week

A lost cause?

Embattled Cleveland Coach Byron Scott, a former Lakers All-Star, on the struggling Cavaliers’ mentality: “If guys don’t fear or hate losing as much as I do, we’re going to keep going through what we’re going through. You have to be to the point where you hate losing. In the ‘80s, we hated losing games. It was gut-wrenching. I don’t know if we’ve gone through that. I have. I don’t know if they have.”

She got game

Miami forward Shane Battier, on the prospects of someone such as Baylor’s Brittney Griner playing in the NBA: “There’s no doubt that in our lifetime, there will be a woman NBA player. I don’t know if it’s Griner or if it’s someone who is 5 years old right now. But we’ll see it. It’ll happen in our lifetime. Just the law of averages.”

Another breakthrough

Dallas owner Mark Cuban, on the possibility of having an openly gay player in professional sports: “There will be somebody who comes out. It’ll be a great moment for sports. I would be honored if he was on my team. I think things have changed significantly in that the players would accept him. All professional sports have had their homophobic missteps along the way; it’s a new era, a new generation and the player would be accepted.”

Pleasantly disappointed

Former All-Star guard Tim Hardaway on why he wasn’t disappointed he wasn’t elected to the Hall of Fame even though he was headed to Atlanta, where the selections will be announced Monday, to watch his son Tim Hardaway Jr. play Syracuse in a national semifinal Saturday: “Because I’m going to the Final Four anyway. So I knew I was going to be happy either way. I think you should never anticipate going in unless you’re Michael Jordan or John Stockton or Karl Malone or someone like that. I’m happy for everyone who got in.”

—Ben Bolch