Bob Knight was a long-time basketball coach at Indiana University. He was known as much for the national titles he helped the Hoosiers win as he was for his legendary outbursts on the basketball court.
In April 2023, Knight was hospitalized for an undisclosed illness. Before that, over the past few years, Knight’s health has been declining. Now, his family has shared the sad news that he has died. He was 83 years old.
In a statement, Knight’s family shared, “It is with heavy hearts that we share that Coach Bob Knight passed away at his home in Bloomington surrounded by his family.”
Knight’s family shared their wish for privacy and their gratefulness for prayers. They wrote, “We are grateful for all the thoughts and prayers, and appreciate the continued respect for our privacy as Coach requested a private family gathering, which is being honored.”
Knight began his basketball coaching career in 1964 at Army. He began working for Indiana University in 1971 and coached the Hoosiers until 2000. Knight started coaching at Texas Tech in 2001 and stayed there until the middle of the 2008-09 season, when he resigned and walked away from coaching college basketball. He ended his career working as a college basketball analyst for ESPN.
After learning the news of Knight’s death, Texas Tech wrote, “Coach Knight … will forever be remembered as one of the top coaches in not only Texas Tech history but all of college basketball.” The statement ended with the sentiment, “Coach Knight’s impact on our basketball program will forever be cherished as one of the greatest tenures in our history.”
Mike Krzyzewski, who is a former basketball coach at Duke and also a former basketball player who played under Knight at Army, shared, “We lost one of the greatest coaches in the history of basketball today.” He explained, “Coach Knight recruited me, mentored me and had a profound impact on my career and in my life. This is a tremendous loss for our sport, and our family is deeply saddened by his passing.”
Knight is survived by his wife, Karen Knight, and his two sons, Pat and Tim.
