| | The sparest possible epitaph on Bob Knight's career at Indiana
University would read as follows:
|  | | Bob Knight, right, faced Roy Firestone on his own turf in May. |
"Couldn't Keep His Hands To Himself."
Of course, nothing is ever that simple with The General, who insisted
through his actions that one of the great careers in collegiate sports
history would end in ignominy. That epitaph understates both his
accomplishments and his failings.
It's a true shame that someone so gifted and so good in so many areas
would be so frail and so pitiful in so many others. Knight loves
history, but hoops historians will not regard him with the same
reverence reserved for Dean Smith, Phog Allen, Henry Iba and other icons
of the game. He has sabotaged his own legacy, one misanthropic deed at a
time. And that will haunt him into his dotage.
The masterful 32-0 national champions of 1976, perhaps the best college
basketball team of all time, must share archive space with The Chair.
The Isiah Thomas-led champions of 1981, who stormed through the NCAA
Tournament, are no more remembered than the choke hold slapped on Neil
Reed.
The 1987 champs, led by Steve Alford, must compete in memory storage
with Knight head-butting Sherron Wilkerson or kicking his son, Pat.
The man who perfected the motion offense is also the man who punched a
Puerto Rican cop.
The man who made an entire belief system of man-to-man defense is also
the man who smashed a vase by a secretary's head.
| |
“ |
But the fact
is, Knight lied last May when he said he could change his ways and learn
civility and respect for others. He lied to IU president Myles Brand. He
lied to the legion of supporters who dearly wanted to believe him. More
pathetically, he probably lied to himself.
” |
It is hugely sad that a man who so dearly loved the fundamentals of the
game would be undone by the fundamentals of human decency. But the fact
is, Knight lied last May when he said he could change his ways and learn
civility and respect for others. He lied to IU president Myles Brand. He
lied to the legion of supporters who dearly wanted to believe him. More
pathetically, he probably lied to himself. He was the same smugly
unapologetic jerk as ever when he appeared on ESPN after dodging
dismissal back then.
And so it came to this, to a chance encounter in an Assembly Hall
doorway. Not with a Woody Hayes bang on national television, as so many
had predicted. He didn't even make it that far -- not even a single game
into the 2000 season. Knight has colossally failed his players, his fans
and himself.
He did so, in the end, with a few words and a grabbed arm.
Nineteen-year-old Kent Harvey didn't come to Indiana to be "coached" by
Bob Knight. There was no excuse for laying hands upon the kid. A strong
man walks away from a flip comment -- especially when his very job
depends on it. And the story dies right there.
Knight said he would have to have been "an absolute moron" to angrily
confront Harvey, given the disciplinary parameters placed upon him. If
the dunce cap fits, wear it, Bob. He might be the dumbest genius I've
ever known.
The True Believers are mobilizing in Bloomington tonight, marching on
the president's house and hanging young Harvey in effigy. It is
precisely the sort of enabling behavior -- villify the accuser, create
an enemy, establish a cause -- that has kept Knight going strong for so
many years. For a guy big on discipline and personal accountability,
it's amazing how many times Knight and his legions have pointed fingers
at others.
Those IU fans should be embarrassed. And so, too, should the IU
administration.
Amazing that they would march upon Brand's residence, since he has been
chief among Knight's enablers through the years -- and even through this
summer, as it turns out.
Before anyone steps up to memorialize Brand, let it be noted that the IU
president's stunning dismissal of Knight was more reaction than action.
If Mark Shaw hadn't made a national story of Knight's confrontation with
his stepson, it occurs in a cream-and-crimson vacuum. Word may never
get out, and Knight may never be forced out.
The IU trustees are scheduled to meet Thursday in New Albany, Ind., and
several are saying that they were preparing to seek Knight's ouster even
before this latest incident. That's big talk for a group that has
benignly overseen a rampant bully for years.
Consider: Brand's statement Sunday afternoon rendered utterly hollow his
May proclamation of a zero-tolerance policy for Knight. In that
statement he surprisingly revealed a number of other violations of "the
letter and spirit of the guidelines" created as an employment choke
chain. Yet Knight was terminated for none of them.
Knight was ordered to work with and answer to athletic director Clarence
Doninger, whom he had angrily confronted after a loss last February. He
did not. He remained on the job.
He was ordered to deal with the world on civil terms. Instead he simply
dropped the world from his schedule, skipping alumni meetings and
stopping teaching his basketball class.
Worst of all, Knight very much violated strictures governing his
dealings with fellow university employees. As Brand said, "There has
been an instant in the recent past in which coach Knight verbally abused
a high-ranking female university official in the presence of other
persons."
Bingo. That should've been it right there. Fired.
Instead he stayed on the job -- until trampling upon someone willing to
make a public issue of it. In a stunning coincidence, Indiana's
tolerance of Bob Knight disappeared at the same time the news media
moved back in.
It is a terrible loss for basketball. It is a huge victory for common
decency.
Pat Forde of the Louisville Courier-Journal is a regular contributor to ESPN.com
| |
ALSO SEE
Indiana removes Knight as coach
Indiana decides to go all season with an interim coach
Knight tells his players he still wants to coach
Katz: Knight remained combative until bitter end
Users react: Knight out at Indiana
Iowa confident Alford not leaving for Hoosiers
Bilas: Knight was his own worst enemy
Bob Knight career timeline
Thousands of students march in support of Knight
'Terrifying' threats aimed at Knight's accuser
AUDIO/VIDEO
 Indiana University officials excuse Bob Knight of his coaching duties.
RealVideo: 28.8
An emotional Dane Fife reacts after a meeting with his former coach Bob Knight.
RealVideo: 28.8
Athletics director Clarence Doninger talks about the future of Indiana basketball with ESPN's Ed Werder.
RealVideo: 28.8
Mark Shaw, the stepfather of Indiana University student Kent Harvey speaks with the ESPNews crew.
RealVideo: 28.8
ESPN's Dick Vitale looks at where Indiana and Bob Knight go from here.
RealVideo: 28.8
Bob Knight denies a student's allegations against him during a news conference Friday.
RealVideo: 28.8
Andy Katz looks who could be Indiana's next head coach.
RealVideo: 28.8
 In support of Bob Knight and his staff, guard Dane Fife and others will consider leaving Indiana.
wav: 134 k
RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
ESPN's Ed Werder spoke with President Myles Brand after Sunday's announcement.
wav: 702 k
RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
Jared Jeffries says Bob Knight was in a tough situation at Indiana.
wav: 255 k
RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
Myles Brand gives examples of Bob Knight's transgressions.
wav: 556 k
RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
IU officials were set to remove Bob Knight prior to the confrontation according to ESPN.com's Andy Katz.
wav: 570 k
RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
Jared Jeffries says the Indiana players want assistant coach Mike Davis to replace Knight.
wav: 148 k
RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
Mark Shaw discusses the incident between his stepson and Bob Knight with ESPN's Chris McKendry.
RealAudio: 14.4
Accuser Kent Harvey tell reporters he was immediately scared when confronted by Knight.
wav: 127 k
RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
Sunday Conversation with Indiana basketball coach Bob Knight.
RealVideo: 28.8
|
