It’s well known Bob Knight would on occasion concoct outrage in an effort to send a message to his team.
Knight’s tactics were sometimes referred to by folks in and around the program as “BK Theater.”
Steve Alford told a tale of such a moment this summer as it relates to the 1984 Olympic team, when Knight threw the team out of practice.
Former NBA star Mike Bibby shared a story last week about Mike Woodson that sounded like it may have been influenced by his time playing for Knight.
When Woodson was coaching the Atlanta Hawks, Bibby was his trusted veteran guard.
On the Club 520 podcast, Bibby talked about a moment when Woodson was looking for a way to motivate the team.
He needed some Woody Theater.
“He pulls me in the office, like before the shootaround, he’s like, ‘Hey, you think I should try to start a fight with somebody and just light a fire under their ass’” Bibby recalled.
Bibby was concerned for Woodson’s wellbeing, trying to start a fight with a much younger professional athlete.
“I’m like, ‘You want to make sure you pick the right mother*****r out there, you don’t want to get your ass whooped,’” Bibby says he told Woodson.
At around 6-foot-5 and 220 pounds, Maurice Evans wasn’t small. And he’s 20 years younger than Woodson.
But that’s who Woodson chose to confront according to Bibby.
“So he comes in there, I think he started going at Mo (Maurice Evans)—Mo, yeah. So he started talking shit, but then he’s thinking his coaches are going to hold him back, but Mo got up out of his seat. They had to hold Mo back, and Mo was about to whoop his ass,” Bibby shared, laughing as he told the story.
“When we got done, he went in the back, in the office, and he’s like, ‘That was good, right?’ I said, ‘Shit, you lucky they held that mother*****r back because he was about to fu** you up,’” Bibby said.
On the episode, Bibby said Woodson was one of his favorite coaches.
A few years ago, Bibby spoke about playing for Woodson in Atlanta.
“He is probably the best coach I ever had, if not the best. Just all the way around – the way he treated the guys and how he was as a person,” Bibby said. “That’s what stuck out most to me.”
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