In addition to Don Larsen, I was lucky enough to be able to ask Coach Bob Knight a couple of questions today.
Do you think you would have been as successful a coach if you had coached in the pre-Wooden era, or today’s era?
Yes. Why wouldn’t I be?
It seems like the whole college sports culture has changed.
That’s the problem. Too many coaches think they’re running Burger King: Have it your way.
You weren’t like that as a coach.
I was consistent, no matter where or when I was coaching.
I’m not sure exactly when this was, but it was when I was still at Indiana. The NCAA instituted a new rule – that practices could only be four hours long. From the time the athlete entered the locker room to change, to the time he showered and left – it could only be four hours at the most. Some coaches called me and said: “How are you going to deal with this new rule? How are you going to fit the whole practice in?” But it was never going to be a problem for me. I never had a practice longer than an hour and forty-five minutes. Because we were organized and disciplined. We always got our work in. I never ran a Burger King.
Don’t miss our once-in-a-lifetime auctions of Coach Knight’s personal collectibles: The Bob Knight Elite Collection & The Bob Knight Collection.
