Bobby Knight, the legendary college basketball coach who led the 1984 U.S. Olympic men’s basketball team to gold, died on Tuesday at the age of 83.
Knight was a controversial figure, but there is no doubt that he was one of the greatest coaches in college basketball history. He won 902 games in 42 seasons at Army and Indiana, and he is the only coach to have won three national championships at two different schools.
Knight’s 1984 U.S. Olympic team is considered to be one of the greatest basketball teams ever assembled. The team featured Michael Jordan, Patrick Ewing, Charles Barkley, and other future NBA stars. Knight led the team to an undefeated record and a gold medal in Los Angeles.
Knight’s coaching style was intense and demanding. He was known for his fiery temper and his perfectionism. But his players respected him, and he knew how to get the best out of them.
“He was a great coach,” Michael Jordan said of Knight in 2010. “He was a tough coach, but he was fair. He wanted to win, and he wanted us to be the best that we could be.”
Knight retired from coaching in 2000. He was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1991.
In a statement, the Indiana University Athletics Department said: “We are deeply saddened by the passing of our friend and mentor, Bobby Knight. Coach Knight was a pillar of the Indiana Basketball tradition and one of the greatest coaches in the history of college basketball. He was a fierce competitor and a passionate teacher. He taught his players not only how to win, but how to live a good life. He will be deeply missed.”
