Bob Knight is the subject of a fine biography by Steve Delsohn and Mark Heisler, Bob Knight: An Unauthorized Biography. Knight has won three national championships and an Olympic gold medal during a stormy career that’s taken him from Army to Indiana to Texas Tech, making friends and enemies by the bushel along the way. The central question about him always has been whether the ends (championship teams, a clean program) justify the means (intimidation, verbal abuse, etc.). The authors don’t come out with a direct answer; they are too busy interviewing as many people as they can find to comment on the events in Knight’s career. The resulting book is a balanced look at a life that almost forces people to choose sides.
It’s easy to conclude after reading this biography that Knight would have benefited from a little discipline from his bosses early in his coaching career. Maybe then he could have controlled his behavior and remained just as good a coach. In any case, Knight remains a fascinating character, and Delsohn and Heisler deserve credit for this fascinating portrait. Budd Bailey works in the sports department of the Buffalo News.
