A. J. Guyton open letter to Coach Knight

[nipprdog]

A.J. Guyton Open Letter to Coach Knight - BT Powerhouse

 

[atvdave]

A.J. Guyton Open Letter to Coach Knight - BT Powerhouse

 

[eric001]

Guyton has class, and Knight was the most effective coach IU basketball ever had or maybe will have. Knight was always a person of great passion and little verbal restraint, especially when he was calling it as he saw it--not exactly classy, but not deserving of wholesale persecution from the university he led to fame either. Sadly, the only classless individuals involved with the Knight drama were Brand and his lackies running IU at the time of the "zero tolerance" BS. I just cannot find it in my heart to blame Knight for having hard feelings about this after how he was treated by IU--especially after they ignored the overwhelming support thrown in their faces by then-current and former players that went through the "Knight experience" and went on to be better people because of his tutelage. I rather doubt he'd even try to mend fences with IU without public and formal apologies from the surviving members of Brand's administration as well as the current people running IU. I feel sorry for all those former players Guyton mentions, as they are caught in between peoples' loyalties to IU and loyalties to Knight...but it was IU that instigated the whole mess and I'm pretty sure Knight sees it as their obligation to eat crow before he ever sets foot there again.

 

[Expat]

He got trampled by the PC pussies that have now taken over pretty much every University in this country now.

 

[forgop]

If Knight exhibited any class, perhaps he'd still be the head coach at IU. Pathetic that some people still blame IU over this while giving Knight a pass.

 

[jblomenberg16]

I recently read Knight's book "The Power of Negative Thinking." Coach Knight gets a lot of bad press for his "stern" tactics but if you peal back a lot of the outward "temper" that he showed, you find that he was a no frills, no BS, leader that demanded the best from everyone, and didn't make excuses.

I'd love to see coach Knight come back to IU, but sadly I don't think it will happen. I think he is still trying to coach and teach former IU players, and former, present, and future IU fans. This isn't about "forgive and forget" to him...its about standing up for what he feels is right and wrong.

 

[hotcorner5]

Regardless of what you think about his methods, you can't argue with his results. You would never see him recruit a dreamteam only to see them leave after their freshman year...every year in a row...Kentucky. He had an excellent graduation record and many of his former athletes are productive citizens in the world today. If you think Bob Knight was the only coach that used physical means their players to get their attention...go to a collegiate wrestling practice sometime.

 

[littletommy]

I'll start by saying I am, and always have been a Kentucky fan. I was born there, and raised as a Kentucky fan, even though I am an Indiana resident. I have not enjoyed college basketball nearly as much since Bob Knight was shunned by IU.

If I were an IU fan, I'd be proud to have a well spoken grad like AJ Guyton, and personally knowing 2 former IU basketball players, who also graduated, I can say Bob Knight kept his word to them, too.

I never liked IU or Coach knight as competitors, don't get me wrong, but I think when Bob Knight left, he took a lot of respect and old school common sense with him. Something that doesn't seem to mean much anymore.

 

[GodFearinGunTotin]

I'm no IU fan but I found Bob's teams entertaining to watch. Expat is right about one side of the equation that led to his demise but Knight seemed to be on some sort of melt-down, kamikaze, trajectory there towards the end. It's a shame too, he sure could coach.

 

[IndyDave1776]

I have never been much of a sports person and by and large am indifferent about the issue. What stands out to me is that Knight's firing was justified by violation of a remarkably vague 'zero-tolerance' policy that, as I recall, completely failed to specify what it was not tolerating. I considered it then and consider it now a remarkably underhanded political maneuver. It also stands out in my reckoning that Knight demanded academic performance of his players and had a graduation rate among his players which was the material of legend. I will also agree with GFGT's assessment about Knight's own performance toward the end. I can say from experience that this is easy to do when you reach the point at which you realize that the deck is stacked against you and you cannot win regardless of fact or merit. I can't help but find great irony in the 'revenge of the nerds' being directed at the coach who put the highest effort into pushing his players academically. I am very certain that Knight could represent, well, not the speaking end of the horse, but he is not alone in that. I also stand by the notion that his antics were way over the top at times. That said, allowing a pattern of behavior for decades and then announcing a 'zero tolerance' policy which fails to specify what it does not tolerate is not the correct solution, especially when the last couple of incidents were precipitated by deliberate agitation on the part of known Knight foes.