Knight: My Story
By Bob Knight with Bob Hammel
Thomas Dunne Books, $25.95
ISBN 0312282575

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A controversial coach tells his story

The Texas Tech University Red Raiders have enjoyed an extremely successful 2001-02 basketball season . . . at least extremely successful by others' expectations. And one of the main reasons for the surprising season is first-year head coach Bob Knight. When most people see his new autobiography Knight: My Story, they'll probably wonder immediately if he discusses his firing from the University of Indiana. He does, but there is so much more to the man and the book.

Knight teams with close friend and former long-time Bloomington Herald-Times sports editor Bob Hammel to give fans (and critics), for the first time in his own words, his view of college basketball and the world around him. He is not afraid to admit his faults or those of others. As expected, Knight speaks his mind about people who aren't high on his list, such as Connie Chung and John Feinstein, and praises the people he admires and respects, like Isaiah Thomas and Ted Williams. Indeed, Knight, a great baseball fan, scatters baseball anecdotes and analogies throughout the book. He also offers numerous speeches that other highly respected coaches have delivered to him or his teams.

The Texas Tech coach, who started his career at West Point at the age of 24, discusses his three national titles with Indiana and the 1984 Olympic gold medal team that included Michael Jordan. He also analyzes virtually every allegation that he has faced through the years. Knight gives the reader an inside look at what makes the man tick by using countless stories. Some will inspire awe, others will have the reader bellowing with laughter. Most simply offer a better understanding of the man.

Knight fans will love this book, while his detractors will appreciate his frankness and learn that he truly has a heart. They say there are two sides to every story. In Knight, Bob Knight presents his, well told.

Matt Fulks is a freelance writer and editor of CBS Sports Presents: Stories from the Final Four.