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The Knight Tape Video captures encounter between IU coach, ex-player
Last spring, CNN/Sports Illustrated set out to learn why, over the past three years, three high school All-America basketball players had left the Indiana University team, one of the most storied college basketball programs in the nation. On March 14, CNN/Sports Illustrated aired its findings in a report that focused on the conduct of head coach Bob Knight. For the first time, some of Knight's former players spoke openly about verbal and physical abuse they say they endured from coach Knight.
Here is our follow-up to that report. This piece was reported by producer Robert Abbott. ATLANTA (CNNSI.com) -- Neil Reed, a former high school All-America who started 72 games for Indiana, alleged that during his junior year in 1997 he was choked by head coach Bob Knight. Reed said the incident occurred at practice when he disagreed with something Knight had said. "At that point coach thrust right at me, just came right at me," Reed said. "[He] wasn't far away enough to where I couldn't see something coming, was close enough to come at me and reach and put his hand around my throat, he came at me with two hands but grabbed me with one hand." Like many schools, Indiana videotapes its basketball practices. For months, rumors have circulated that a tape existed of the choking incident. After our report aired, CNN/Sports Illustrated received a tape of the incident. Though the incident occurred three years ago, Reed had not seen the tape ... until now. "Yeah, that was me ... oooh," Reed said as he watched the tape Tuesday. Asked what his initial reaction was after seeing the tape, Reed said, "It was disgusting to me. I don't need a tape to tell me what happened. It might help with other people's ... I don't know, I've seen it enough in my head ... and when I watch it, it's disgusting for me to watch it. If it weren't me, I'd be disgusted."
"Guys that have transferred from here and had reasons for transferring from here and from reasons for coach verbally and physically abusing them, I mean that just shows that you have not developed into a man," said A.J. Guyton, a senior guard on the 1999-2000 team, "and I think that is the main reason why this guy, Neil Reed, is coming out with these statements." Guard Michael Lewis was another who challenged Reed's allegations. "You know, I never saw coach grab Neil around the neck or choke him in any way," said Lewis, also a senior last season. "I've never seen coach touch anybody or grab anybody in any way trying to physically harm them." The same day Guyton and Lewis spoke up, Tim Garl, the trainer for Indiana's basketball team for the past 19 years, said, "The choking thing never happened ... give me a lie detector." The following day, Knight did something he has rarely done. He allowed a local television news crew to shoot practice. With the cameras rolling, Knight proceeded to move his players around the floor by their necks. During subsequent interviews with that station, another local station and HBO's Real Sports, Knight addressed Reed's allegations. "Maybe I grabbed Neil Reed by the shoulder. Maybe I took him by the back of the neck," he said. "I don't know. I don't remember everything that I have ever done in practice." Another reporter from another station asked Knight specifically if he grabbed Reed.
The reporter then asked "But by the neck?" "I might have grabbed him by the back of the neck. I might have grabbed the guy and moved him over," Knight said. "I mean, if you choke a guy, I would think he would need hospitalization." In the interview with Frank Deford on HBO's Real Sports, Deford stood up and grabbed for the front of Knight's throat. "Did you go like this?" Deford asked. "I don't remember that. I am sure that I have with kids," Knight said. "I will tell you this: There isn't anything that I have done with one kid that I haven't done with a lot of other kids. "I have no apologies to make whatsoever for anything that I have done in an attempt to motivate kids." The next evening, Knight refused to take questions about the allegations at Indiana's press conference before the first round of the NCAA tournament. But Knight did spend nearly 22 minutes defending his coaching techniques. "If my kids left and they weren't successful and they didn't have degrees and were on the bread line or they were selling drugs or were in jail for one thing or another," he said, "then I'd really have a lot of questions about just what the hell my methods were all leading to." On March 17, in the first round of the NCAA tournament, Knight's Hoosiers were thumped by Pepperdine, 77-57. "I'm not talking to the greatest assemblage of basketball minds I have ever been before, I don't think," he said at the post-game press conference, "and you guys have had to figure that out that we just got pounded." After the initial CNN/Sports Illustrated story aired, three former Indiana players called the network to say they had witnessed incidents similar to that described by Reed. Ricky Calloway, a forward on Indiana's 1987 national championship team, said he saw Knight slap former forward Daryl Thomas and punch two-time All-America guard Steve Alford. Both Alford and Thomas denied being physically attacked by Knight. But Calloway told CNN/Sports Illustrated that, based on what he had experienced in his years at Indiana, he had every reason to believe Reed was telling the truth. "I wanted to put some validity to what Neil Reed said," Calloway said. "I felt he was getting the bad end of the stick. What he said was true. I've seen some things that happened to him happen on our team to some of my teammates." On March 23, Indiana president Myles Brand appointed two university trustees to investigate all of the allegations in the CNN/Sports Illustrated report. These included Reed's assertion that he had been choked, an accusation that Knight had brandished soiled toilet paper at his players, and an allegation that Brand himself had been thrown out of practice by Knight. "These are serious charges and we owe it to everyone involved including coach Knight that we get to the ultimate truth," said trustee Frederick Eichhorn. "I want to emphasize one thing," trustee John Walda said. "There are no sacred cows at Indiana University and that includes the basketball program." Immediately after Reed's account of the choking incident aired, Walda told the Indianapolis Star: "I'm speaking as a board member. As a lawyer, I would put no stock in it." In an editorial on March 27, the university's student newspaper called for an independent investigation into the charges. In the first report, Reed had said that two assistant coaches had to pull Knight off of him. The tape does not bear that out. "I know what happened and that [the tape] proves what happened," Reed said. "I think the moment after something like that, especially a 20-year-old kid being in that situation, I don't think you can find fault in a little bit of ... I mean ... I'm not lying. That's how I remember the thing happening and [former assistant coach Ron] Felling's five feet from me. As far as people coming in between, I remember people coming between us." On Tuesday evening, Walda and Eichhorn flew to Atlanta to view the tape at the CNN/Sports Illustrated studios. Knight was offered the opportunity to join them, but his spokesman declined on his behalf, saying Knight would defer to the trustees. "The tape does seem to shed some light on the reported incident between coach Knight and Neil Reed," Walda said. "Now it will be up to us to continue and complete our investigation. We'll be comparing what we've seen in the video with the accounts from witnesses; we will pursue the taking of more evidence from witnesses; and finally we will issue a final report, which will include, as part of the evidence reviewed, the videotape. I've taken this assignment quite seriously. We will proceed to complete our review in a very professional and thorough manner." The findings of the official investigation are due no later than the third week of June.
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