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| | Thursday, September 14 Thomas doubts Knight would take offer | |||||
| SportsTicker INDIANAPOLIS -- Isiah Thomas reiterated his desire to team up again with deposed Indiana University coach Bob Knight. Thomas, who was Knight's star player when the Hoosiers won a national championship in 1981, held a news conference Thursday to discuss his interest in having Knight serve as a mentor to him with the Indiana Pacers. "I don't think I could find a better person to mentor me as a coach," Thomas said. "He could help me in a mentoring role, an advisory role, a big brother role. Now that he has more time on his hands, I would have more access to the brightest mind in basketball." Thomas said Monday at his charity golf tournament in Detroit that he would like to hire Knight, who was fired by Indiana University on Sunday after a legendary but turbulent 29-year career at the school, as an assistant coach. On Thursday, Thomas admitted Knight would probably not accept the offer. "I would love for him to be there every moment just like (Lakers coach) Phil Jackson has with Tex Winters, but I don't think that's possible because I know he still wants to coach college basketball," Thomas said. "But what would you pay for the Mona Lisa? It's not every day you get a chance to sit down and have access to a brain such as this. He has the brightest mind in basketball." Ironically, Thomas had a love-hate relationship with Knight and left Indiana University after his sophomore season to declare for the NBA draft in 1981. The two often clashed and Knight kicked Thomas out of practice more than a few times in an attempt to improve his star guard's work ethic. Thomas went on to enjoy a Hall of Fame career in the NBA, leading the Detroit Pistons to back-to-back NBA titles in 1989 and 1990. He often credited Knight for instilling the discipline he needed to flourish in the NBA. Despite not having any coaching experience, Thomas was hired by the Pacers to replace Larry Bird, who resigned after leading them to the NBA Finals. Thomas had named Brendan Malone as his top assistant. Unfortunately, Knight's triumphs were tainted by a temper that led to his downfall at Indiana. University president Myles Brand called Knight's recent behavior "defiant and hostile," when he fired him on Sunday. Brand said since his "zero tolerance" policy was instituted in May, Knight has ignored the chain of command within the athletic department, attempted to embarrass the university's Board of Trustees and other officials, refused to attend alumni events and has behaved with an overall lack of cooperation. Thomas on Thursday criticized the school for dismissing Knight. "We had someone like Vince Lombardi and John Wooden at Indiana and those guys just don't come along often," Thomas said. "We had access to one in Indiana. We had a chance to do this story right, but it's not right. People like him you just don't fire." Knight owns a career record of 763-290. He spent his first six years at Army and is 117 wins shy of passing North Carolina's Dean Smith to become college basketball's all-time winningest coach. | ALSO SEE Thomas anticipates meeting deadline to sell CBA Hoosiers name Davis interim coach Hoosier alum Cuban wants Knight on Mavs' payroll Ousted General: Knight fired for unacceptable behavior Indiana decides to go all season with an interim coach Indiana players issue ultimatum: Hire who we want AUDIO/VIDEO   Isiah Thomas talks with ESPN's Trey Wingo on SportsCenter.RealVideo: 28.8   Isiah Thomas entertains the idea of hiring Bob Knight for the Pacers.wav: 131 k RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6 | |||||