BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — Legendary IU basketball coach Bob Knight, 82, was hospitalized over the weekend with an undisclosed illness but is back resting at home.
His family thanked fans for the thoughts and prayers. The family is asking for privacy as Knight is cared for and resting.
"Coach always taught us, and those that played for him, the importance of fighting through adversity and he and our family thank you for the tremendous amount of support you have shown and given during this time," Pat Knight wrote in a statement.
Knight's name has long been synonymous with IU men's basketball.
His 29-season resume includes a school record 662 victories, 11 Big Ten championships, five Final Four appearances and, yes, three national titles.
And his stories have struck pride in the hearts of Hoosiers for decades — the Olympic gold medal he won in 1984 with Michael Jordan after cutting Charles Barkley; the infamous chair-throwing incident in 1985; and the firing that took place Sept. 10, 2000, causing the rift between Knight and the university.
University officials put Knight on a zero-tolerance policy earlier that year following an investigation into whether he had choked a former player, the late Neil Reed, during a practice. Then, in September, a student accused Knight of grabbing him in a hallway.
Knight responded by calling his own news conference, bringing witnesses to help explain his version. Two days later, the late Myles Brand announced Knight's firing.
That was his last appearance in the building for 20 years.
Despite the tireless efforts of university officials, Knight refused every chance to come back.
He skipped championship team reunions and even declined to attend his own induction into the school's athletic Hall of Fame in 2009 because he said he didn't want his presence to detract from other class members.
Knight hadn't exactly been invisible around Bloomington or the state after the firing.
He took a job at Texas Tech, and then retired in 2008 with a then-record 902 career wins. He worked on ESPN as a color analyst. He gave speeches, attended fundraisers, signed autographs and attended basketball games and practices around Indiana.
And yet everyone associated with Indiana basketball still had one question: Will he ever come back?
And then, in 2020, he finally did.
On Feb. 8, 2020, he took a short stroll from the practice gym to Assembly Hall ending a 20-year journey home.
It seemed as if he never left.
When he walked through the tunnel and onto his old court for the first time since his firing in September 2000, the crowd went wild — chanting his name, roaring with approval, thanking him for all the success and banners he brought to Bloomington.
“It was one of the greatest and most emotional things for me," former player Randy Wittman, who had a key role in the reunion, said at the time. “I don't know if we'll see something like this again in college basketball. When he moved back here, I told him you're back here because this is where you belong."
No, he didn't wear his trademark red sweater or throw a chair. But he did appear to get a little misty-eyed as the fans cheered.
“We love you, Bobby,” one shouted.
Knight did not speak to the crowd over the public address system. He didn't need to.
“I was standing there and he was coach Knight," Wittman said. “It was like he hadn't left that locker room. The words he gave to those players before they went out on the floor, it was fabulous."
The fans thought so, too, sending Knight home with one lasting chant: “Thank you, Coach, thank you, Coach."
This is a breaking news story. Check back for updates.
