Ken Davis

Nothing Bob Knight does should ever surprise us.

Not the chair throwing. Not the assault of a police officer. Not the choking of a player during practice. Not the defiance of a zero tolerance policy. Not even the argument with his chancellor while shopping at a grocery store salad bar.

Given Knight’s track record — and everything we’ve witnessed over his 42-year coaching career — we certainly shouldn’t have been surprised by the news Monday that he had suddenly decided to retire, effective immediately. But it was an unexpected development, one that came with little or no foreshadowing — at least publicly.

For that very reason, when the story broke, it was only natural to speculate. Maybe Knight had done something wrong again and was forced to resign. Maybe he just wanted to rest. Maybe he was bored in Lubbock. Maybe he was ill and needed immediate medical attention.

None of those were true, of course.

Conventional wisdom says the timing was strange. Conventional wisdom says a Hall of Fame coach who considers himself a teacher, an educator, and a leader wouldn’t walk away from players with 10 games remaining in the season.

But since when has Bob Knight, the man with the most coaching victories in the history of college basketball, ever employed conventional wisdom?

It turns out Knight, 67, is tired. That’s how he explained his decision to his athletic director, his wife, the Texas Tech chancellor and his son. Pat Knight, who has been the head coach designate since 2005, will take over the program immediately and coach the Red Raiders to the end of this season and beyond.

Pat Knight told Texas Tech TV that his father wanted him to get his feet wet. In his own way, Bob Knight’s decision ultimately may have come down to protecting his son. Perhaps Knight wanted to make sure his son moved into the job that was promised to him. When Knight was fired from Indiana in 2000, administrators never discussed the future with Pat Knight and made no offer to keep him on the coaching staff. That, among other things about Indiana, has never stopped bothering Bob Knight.

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For the record book, Knight’s final game was Saturday, a 67-60 win over Oklahoma State that left him with 902 victories. He won’t stick around through the end of his contract, which was extended three years through the 2011-12 season back in September.

Knight arrived at Texas Tech in March 2001 and was welcomed by a large crowd during a press conference at the United Spirit Arena. His departure was executed in a fashion that could only be described as the exact opposite. Do not wait for the goodbye press conference. Knight has never been warm and cuddly with the media. He isn’t going to start now.

“He’s just tired,” Pat Knight said. “What more can you win; what more can you do? . . . Today was the most relieved and peaceful I’ve seen him in a long time.”

Believe it or not, this type of decision confronts many older coaches, especially the most successful of the profession. John Thompson retired from Georgetown in the middle of a season, giving reasons that were strikingly similar to those offered by Knight. Some of the biggest names in coaching will soon struggle with the decision to retire because it’s often difficult to orchestrate a gracious exit.

Slide show Knight life Click to see images of Bobby Knight’s highs, lows and everything in-between while coaching at Indiana and Texas Tech. more photos

Bob Knight didn’t care. He just left. That was gracious enough for him.

Knight has won three national championships but the last was in 1987. His teams haven’t exactly been relevant in recent NCAA tournaments. Indiana’s perfect season under Knight in 1976 is ancient history to players today, a seemingly unrealistic goal for a generation so locked into personal achievements.

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