Bob Knight is not an idiot. He's a competitive hot-head, but he's no fool. Either you like him, which is true of many people that actually know him in person and not through the media, or you don't, which is pretty much everybody else. Personally, if I had been very satisified with my effort and job performance over a long period of time, and my boss came up and said 'good to see you're bring in the duckets now BOB' I'd flip my shit, too. The Athletic Director complained of not being showed the proper respect? That guy should check himself.
Right on the head, garfield. Living in Indiana as I do now, I'm constantly amazed at the number of people who have good stories to tell about Knight. Of course, I still think he's a knob, but at least I know he has a nice side. This is a tale of two dipsticks. If the AD has so little tact as to publicly say to Knight, "Hey, glad you aren't being an asshole for US," he should probably expect a little anger in response. Of course, the phrase "a little anger" has no place in the same paragraph as Knight's name, who has all the control of Marlon Brando in a Twinkie factory. Texas Tech and Bobby deserve one another.
How does Bob Knight remind you of "incredibly intelligent people"? He's a basketball genius. Though I know precious little about the sport, I know enough to say that you don't produce championship teams every four years at the college level without possessing something more than a knack for designing success. But at the same time, I think it's very clear that Bob Knight does not live in the same world as the rest of us. This is similar to my experiences with wildly intelligent people - they often behave in peculiar, erratic ways. This doesn't mean they are bad people, or that they lack all ability to relate to others.
you don't produce championship teams every four years Neither does Bobby Knight. Time has passed him by. And I'm sorry to say tales of his kindness go right over my head. Anyone who cannot sit down to a conversation with someone, whatever that person's job, and treat them with human decency until given a reason to behave otherwise deserves none of my respect. Did anyone see the ESPN interview a month or so ago with Bobby and some other college coach who used to be his assistant? The interviewer had barely gotten two words out of their mouth before Knight turned into a raging maniac. I am an enormous sports fan and I'll turn a blind eye to a lot of shit, but it only goes so far. All the basketball knowledge in the world doesn't make him ok.
Here are the documents that the AD and the chancellor filed after the Knight incident, including some drafts.
