'The game has lost an icon'

Bob Knight won 3 NCAA titles, and influenced hundreds of coaches. His temper was just as fearsome. We look at the legacy of legend.

Author

Mike Miller
November 02, 2023

"It is with heavy hearts that we share that Coach Bob Knight passed away at his home in Bloomington surrounded by his family. We are grateful for all the thoughts and prayers, and appreciate the continued respect for our privacy as Coach requested a private family gathering, which is being honored."

RIP, Bob Knight. Let’s look at his legacy.

1. Bob Knight, 1940-2023

It’s hard to imagine Bob Knight in today’s college hoops game.

He would’ve hated NIL. Transfers? Please. Players would’ve ignored his motivational tactics. And his infamous temper, well, that’s an obvious HR violation/lawsuit/non-starter for pretty much every program.

It’s impossible to imagine him on the sideline today, blowing his top at a ref, or castigating a player for a poor play. And the thing is, we don’t need to imagine it. It’s better that way. Knight was a towering figure in all of sports — not just college basketball — during the last 25 years of the 20th century for his on-court success and brilliant basketball mind. The former Indiana and Texas Tech coach was, in every sense of the word, larger than life.

There will be no shortage of tributes to Bob Knight over the coming weeks. Indiana’s men’s and women’s teams will wear patches to honor him. School officials and current Hoosier coach Mike Woodson issued glowing, heartfelt remarks, as did officials at Texas Tech. The stories will flow, both from the media (I’ll share some of the best below), and coaches. But, as with any complicated figure, it’ll be telling how they’re shared.

A death is usually the place where messy history is glossed over, or briefly mentioned. It’s easier to remember a person fondly, either for their accomplishments (Knight had many) or how they approached life (without fear). But Bob Knight’s legacy can’t be untangled from his mistakes (there were many). Nor should it be.

He forever fought with his better judgement. And it seemed like he always lost that fight, no matter how much his teams won, or how much he was adored.

In perhaps the definitive Bob Knight feature, written by Sports Illustrated’s Frank DeFord, barely two months before Knight led Indiana to its fourth NCAA Tournament title, and the second of his career, this conundrum is explored in great detail. Knight knew what his foibles were. But it didn’t always matter.

The boy-coach who got his first major-college head-coaching job at 24 may be middle-aged now, but still, every day, in some way, adolescence must be conquered again. "Listen to me," Woody Hayes pleaded with him once. "Listen to me, Bobby, because I've made a lot of mistakes and you don't have to repeat mine." The real issue isn't the countenance, anyway. The real issue is the rabbits. And Knight knows that. In the Indiana locker room before a game earlier this season, Knight was telling his players to concentrate on the important things. He said, "How many times I got to tell you? Don't fight the rabbits. Because, boys, if you fight the rabbits, the elephants are going to kill you." But the coach doesn't listen to himself. He's always chasing after the incidental; he's still a prodigy in search of proportion. "There are too many rabbits around," he says. "I know that. But it doesn't do me any good. Instead of fighting the elephants, I just keep going after the rabbits." And it's the rabbits that are doing him in, ruining such a good thing.

And yet, in spite of it all, in 42 years as a head coach, Knight rose to the college hoops’ mountaintop, or its Mount Rushmore, if you‘re so inclined. John Wooden is on there. Coach K certainly is (as an ex-Army player under Knight, that remains an incredible connection). The other two spots might be any mix of Dean Smith, Jim Calhoun, Rick Pitino, John Thompson, Roy Williams, Adolph Rupp … and Knight. Take your pick. They’re all worthy.

But that’s a conversation about greatness. About elevating a program to a place few have been.

If it’s a conversation about legacy and impact? Knight’s on the Mount. His motion offense, often imitated, rarely matched, was a thing of beauty for the 70s and 80s. His ideas changed the way the sport was played, and he even adapted when needed. (See: Steve Alford hitting 3s en route to Indiana’s 1987 NCAA title.)

He wasn’t perfect, even if he coached the last men’s team that was. Bob Knight was just himself, warts and all.

THE ALMANAC, VOL. 2

Hope for Hoosiers?

Indiana’s coming off a back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances (that’s only happened twice since 2009), but hasn’t been past the Sweet 16 since 2002.

Could this be a season where the Hoosiers surprise people? The Almanac breaks down Indiana’s strong points (the frontcourt) and the questions (outside shooting). Read all about it for just $19.99.

2. Coaches, others on Knight’s impact

Knight left a lasting impression on his former players and a generation of coaches (maybe more). He was a constant presence at Indiana practices last season, which made ex-player Mike Woodson delighted. After all, how often do you get to coach in front of your mentor?

Woodson was “grateful that [Knight] was able to come to our practices after I came back. His presence meant so much to me, our staff, and our players.”

Woodson wasn’t alone.

  • His former player — and the man who passed Knight on the all-time wins chart — Mike Krzyzewski remembers Knight as “as one of kind. Coach Knight recruited me, mentored me, and had a profound impact on my career and in my life. This is a tremendous loss for our sport.”

  • Roy Williams’ love for North Carolina and Dean Smith is well known. What about Knight? “He acted like I was one of his guys and made me so much better. He was one of my heroes and I will be forever grateful to him.”

  • Steve Alford told the Indy Star that he couldn’t really talk about Knight. In a text message, he simply said “I’m a mess. I loved that man so much.”

  • Rhode Island coach (and one-time Hoosier coach) Archie Miller: “In my opinion, there’s not 4 or 5 coaches in the game of basketball that were as good as him.”

  • UCLA coach Mike Cronin was delighted when Knight offered advice, and says “the game of basketball has lost one of the greatest we have seen or ever will see.”

  • What about in-state rival Purdue? Matt Painter knows that “the thing he did from a basketball standpoint was make us better. In rivalries, you get everyone’s best. He knew he always got Purdue’s best. .. that’s what great coaches and great competition does. It makes everyone better. That was the standard.”

  • Indiana women’s coach Teri Moren: "I fell in love with Indiana men's basketball, at a very, very young age. He is perhaps one of the reasons why I'm sitting here today."

  • Dusty May never played for Knight, but even as a student manager at Indiana he knew that “Bob Knight was truly a legend in every sense of the word. The impact that he had on me and so many others simply can’t be measured.”

  • From the NABC: “Few coaches in college basketball history have matched his on-court accomplishments, and members of his vast coaching tree have and will continue to impact the game for generations to come. Coach Knight’s ‘General’ persona no doubt shaped his public image, but behind the scenes, he was an advocate for our sport and our profession, as evidenced by roles on the NABC and NABC Foundation Boards of Directors. The passing of Coach Knight is a significant loss for the coaching community and college basketball at large.”

  • Dick Vitale rightfully says Knight “was so good in his prime teaching how to play the game.”

  • Jay Bilas says “while he wasn’t for everyone, I always truly liked, respected and admired him. As he once said of Henry Iba, of all the shadows cast in the game, his was the longest.”

3. The best (and no-so-good) of Bob Knight

When Knight was good — he began coaching at age 24 and compiled 902 career victories, the all-time record when he retired — no one was better.

Indiana hoops lived up to its larger than life standard under Knight. Coincidence that the movie Hoosiers was released not long before their 1987 title? Nah.

But things also got messy under Knight. From Dan Wetzel’s terrific tribute:

He was among the last of a certain breed, a terrifying tyrant seemingly incapable of interacting with the outside world yet also a skilled, masterful teacher and loyal supporter for all who managed to survive playing for him.

He was nicknamed the General for how he carried himself and his coaching roots at West Point. In truth he was more an unforgiving drill sergeant.

Knight was a volcano always ready to erupt, part of what made him a-larger-than-life, must-watch sideline star during some of college hoops' most glorious eras. He was a colorful storyteller with a caustic wit and, if he wished, an abundance of charm. He was, if nothing else, incredibly entertaining.

There was the right way to do things (namely his way). The game would be played with discipline, fundamentals, toughness, smarts, preparation, respect and always featuring man-to-man defense. Everything else was just a distraction, or someone getting in the way. He cared little for criticism.

“When my time on Earth is gone, and my activities here are passed,” he once said over the Assembly Hall public address system, “I want them to bury me upside down, and my critics can kiss my ass.”

Those outbursts became part of the legend. He choked a player. He threw a chair across the court. Fought with fans, and threatened refs. Feuded with other coaches (this quote about Joe B. Hall is wild). And he could be merciless with the media, whether it was a withering wit, or direct threatening actions. Nobody could go from calm to caustic and downright angry faster than Bob Knight.

The antics could overshadow the winning, but not everything. From Seth Davis’ tribute:

Assessing Knight’s legacy is no layup, but it starts with the inarguable fact that he had one of the greatest minds the sport has ever known. He was one of the foremost exponents of man-to-man defense, and the motion offense he devised during his early years in Bloomington was one of the more significant basketball developments of the last 60 years. He demanded the world from his players, even more from himself. Knight coached many future pros but only one, Isiah Thomas, the star guard of his 1981 champs, ever played in an NBA All-Star game. His teams didn’t win because their talent was overwhelming. They won because their coach was Bob Knight.

“The brilliance of Coach was that somehow, he knew you had more to give than what you were giving,” Thomas says. “He would cross all boundaries to bring that out of you. If you look at all the guys who played for him, we all have the same kind of mettle and toughness. We can all say we wouldn’t be the type of men we are today if we didn’t play for Coach Knight.”

And it’s not like everything he did was cruel. He could be funny, and was a fabulous storyteller. Playing golf with him would’ve been amazing — I can’t tell you how many times I’ve watched this video. He was a proud father, and will always be beloved in Indiana.

In the end, Knight knew who he was. And that was enough.

4. LSU must adjust without Jalen Cook

Second-year coach Matt McMahon spent another summer in Baton Rouge revamping the LSU roster. But rather than a full rebuild, he tried a more targeted approach this time around.

But his primary target won’t be able to play in 2023-24.

Cook played one season at LSU before spending the last two seasons thriving at Tulane. He averaged 19.9 ppg last season, and also boasted an ARate of 30.0, good for Top 75 in D-I.

His absence will likely thrust freshman Mike Williams III into the starting role, something that doesn’t bode well for a program trying to improve on a 14-19 record. McMahon says Williams is “a natural-born leader.” I just hope that means he can handle SEC defenses.

5. #MACtion for the basketball court

Wednesdays in the fall are for Mid American Conference football. And also for announcing preseason polls and all-conference teams.

The top of the MAC looks exactly like The Almanac’s rankings. Everyone’s chasing Akron, but Kent State, Ohio and Toledo can all catch the Zips.

Why is Akron the pick? It’s a no-brainer when you have all-league first teamers Ali Ali and Enrique Freeman, the likely POY.

Those two are a load for any MAC team to handle.

‘There will never be another like him’

The Field of 68 After Dark paid tribute to Bob Knight last night. It’s worth your time.

Links as you watch endless Bob Knight videos.

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