Hall of Fame coach Bob Knight won three national championships, 11 Big Ten titles and 902 career games. He led the last undefeated Division I menās basketball champion. He won an Olympic gold medal in 1984 and a national title as an Ohio State player in 1960.
Knight's family announced his death Wednesday at 83. To help remember the tempestuous giant of the sport, here's a sampling of some of Knightās most memorable quotes:
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āIf you want to be a real winner, you have to consider a place like Indiana. (Long Island coach) Clair Bee has been like a father to me ever since Iāve been in the East. He told me I had no choice; I had to go to Indiana. And I felt the same way,ā ā Knight, after becoming Hoosiers coach in 1971.
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āDefense is the key to winning in any sport and thatās what I believe in." ā Knight, at his introductory news conference in 1971.
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āMy little talk to them went like this: Winning the Big Ten didnāt make any difference and winning the national championship didnāt make any difference. If you will continue to work and follow what we want done, you have the ability to go undefeated and anything less than that would not be the equivalent of what your capabilities were." ā Knight on his opening message to the 1975-76 team in the movie āPerfect in ā76.ā
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āI think itās the goal of any coach to reach the NCAA Tournament. Itās almost beyond the realm of comprehension to think you can win it.ā ā Knight after the Hoosiers completed their undefeated season for the first of his three national titles.
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āIāve always said, all along, that if I ever get to a point where I canāt control myself, Iāll quit.ā ā Knight to Sports Illustrated in 1981.
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āI should have gone to his home and talked to him. Iām sure I could have brought him back to IU.ā ā Knight to The Bloomington Herald-Times in 1985, reflecting on Larry Birdās departure. ___
āI hear somebody across the floor keep hollering, āCoach! Coach! Coach Knight!ā I get all kinds of suggestions. I try not to pay any attention to it. Hereās a little old lady across the floor, reminded me of my grandmother. I said, āDid you want me for something?ā She said, āIf youāre not going to sit down any more today than you have so far, could I have your chair?āā ā Knight's joking explanation of why he threw a chair across the court during a game in 1985.
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āIt didnāt look good. In fact, my assistants had just about given up, and so had I. Then I looked down toward the other bench, and I saw (coach) Dale Brown standing there. I knew then that we had a chance. ... To paraphrase Churchill, probably never has so little been done with so much.ā ā Knight, referencing the Hoosiers' NCAA Tournament game comeback against LSU en route to his final national championship in 1987.
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āI think if rape is inevitable, relax and enjoy it." ā Knight, to Connie Chung of NBC News in 1988. Knight contended the quote was taken out of context, later saying: āThe word rape can be used in several ways. One is in something that has gone out of control or over which you have no control. It obviously was in that context that I was using the word.ā
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āProbably no motivational device Iāve come across is as good as this.ā ā Knight, while snapping a bullwhip during an NCAA Tournament news conference in 1992.
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āWhen my time on Earth is gone and my activities here are past, I want they bury me upside down and my critics can kiss my ass.ā ā Knight, on Indiana's Senior Day 1994.
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āI think there are circumstances that could develop surrounding any human being that would set that human being off in an abnormal way. I think that we all hope that when such a situation would arise that we can control our emotions, or we can react to the circumstances in such a way that doesnāt put either that person or people surrounding them in any kind of a highly embarrassing or difficult situation. But I donāt think that we ever really know.ā ā Knight, responding to a question from ESPN's Digger Phelps in 1998 who asked his former coaching rival if he was a potential time bomb in the manner of Woody Hayes.
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ā'Son, my name isnāt Knight to you, itās coach Knight or itās Mr. Knight. I donāt call people by their last name and neither should you.'ā ā Knight, explaining what he told IU student Kent Harvey during the incident that led to his firing in September 2000.
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āI hope theyāre all dead." ā Knight, on Dan Patrickās radio show in 2017 while discussing the Indiana decision-makers who fired him. When Patrick noted some of the people had died, Knight responded: āWell, I hope the rest of them go.ā
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āEarly failure is usually better than early success, because the lesson in humility lasts a long time and makes you more effective over the long term.ā ā Knight, in his book "The Power of Negative Thinking: An Unconventional Approach To Achieving Positive Results."
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āIāll remember that until Iām gone. You are the best fans in the history of college basketball.ā ā Knight, after receiving a standing ovation at Bloomington North High School during a 2017 speech.
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AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball