Jim Carroll quotes from The Basketball Diaries (1995)

Jim Carroll

When I was young, about eight or so, I tried making friends with God by inviting Him to my house to watch the World Series. He never showed.

Jim Carroll

You're growing up. And rain sort of remains on the branches of a tree that will someday rule the Earth. And it's good that there is rain. It clears the month of your sorry rainbow expressions, and it clears the streets of the silent armies... so we can dance.

Jim Carroll

You gotta have presence on the court. Presence like a cheetah rather than a chimp. Sure, they both got it, but Chimpy gotta jump his nuts around to get it. The shy cheetah moves with total nonchalance, stickin' it to them in his sexy, slow strut. Me? I play like a cheetah.

Jim Carroll

I was just gonna sniff a bag but one guy says if you're gonna sniff you might as well pop it and another guys says if you gonna pop it you might as well mainline.

Jim Carroll

All I've been doing is reading this diary wondering how the hell I'm still alive?

Jim Carroll

I felt dazed, like I just came out of a 4 hour movie I didn't understand.

Jim Carroll

Time sure flies when you're young and jerking off.

Jim Carroll

I got six months in Riker's Island for assault, robbery, resisting arrest, and possession of narcotics. I sweated out a horrible cure and stayed clean the whole stretch, even though it's been easier to get good junk in here than it is on the street. Shit, it's been hard, man. All I've been doing is reading these diaries and wondering how the hell I'm still alive, and even if I care. Suffice to say that I'm finished with the asshole bandits of shower-room rape, and suffice to say that those swine guards won't draw blood from my ankles again. Suffice to say that I've been just thinking about dumb stuff, like what a nice concept it is to have a godmother and a godfather, wondering who my godparents might be. My mom won't visit me here, so I guess I'll just have to wait till I get home to ask.

Jim Carroll

Know this. There's different types of users of junk. You got your rich dilettante square-ass who dabbles now and then and always has enough money to run off to the Riviera if he feels he's **** around to the danger point. Street junkies hate these pricks, but they're always suckers, and their money makes them tolerable. Then you got your upper-middle-class Westchester preppies... same as the others, basically. What they're good for is opening their mommy and daddy's eyes to this social virus and putting pressure on the government to do something about it. Then there's us street kids. Start **** around very young, 13 or so... We think we all got it under control and won't get strung out. This rarely works. I'm living proof. But in the end, you just got to see the junk as another 9-to-5 gig. The hours are just a bit more inclined to shadows.

Hey Jim, you're not going to waste the whole day lying around are you?

Jim Carroll

Yeah Mom, I'm up. The loony alarm went off.

Well, close the blinds. Don't look at her and don't listen to her.

Jim Carroll

How can I not?

Hey white boy! Are you ready for your beatin'?

Jim Carroll

Don't let your mouth get you into something your ass can't handle.

Jesus the Nazarene, Mary the whore, Mary the hairdresser-

Jim Carroll

HEY LADY! SHUT UP!!

Jim Carroll

Too bad, Father. I was just beginning to enjoy it.

We can do it again tomorrow if you like, Mr. Carroll.

You okay, Jim?

Jim Carroll

Yeah.

Does it hurt?

Mickey

What? Do you want to rub it for him, Pedro?

Yo Jim, give it a rest, man. You're never gonna beat him.

Mickey

The guy's a pervert, did you hear him? "We can do it again tomorrow if you like, Mr. Carroll."

Jim Carroll

C'mon. Let's cut out of here!