If He Changes, It Will Be a Knight to Remember

Tony Kornheiser of the Washington Post on Bob Knight:

“[He] has a few guys he lets inside the ropes. I have been one of them. I’m attracted to his intellect and his unexpected charm, and frightened of his combustion.

“I said to him once, ‘I would never play for you.’

“And he grabbed me by the roll of flab around my stomach--and pinched hard--and said, ‘I’d never recruit you.’

“Knight says he’s working on changing. It won’t take us long to see.”

*

Trivia time: As an Ohio State reserve, what was Knight’s contribution in the Buckeyes’ 75-55 victory over California in the 1960 NCAA championship game?

*

Theorizing: Scott Ostler in the San Francisco Chronicle: “Baseball lords deny they juice up the ball, but they can’t explain this year’s epidemic of homers.

“Maybe it’s the cows. Ball covers are made of cowhide, and it could be that due to the hormones we use to fatten cows, their hide is thicker and springier. Maybe that’s what is meant by ‘and the cow jumped over the moon.’ ”

*

Ball barrage: Chicago Cub infielder Jeff Huson, after teammate Glenallen Hill had hit a home run that landed on top of the three-story building beyond Wrigley Field’s left-field bleachers:

“I’ll tell you, it’s not safe to be within a mile of the ballpark anymore.”

*

Perfectionist: Arizona Diamondback Manager Buck Showalter on 6-foot-10 pitcher Randy Johnson:

“Most guys that big end up in the bullpen because they can’t stay together mechanically over a long outing. He’s different. He’s gotten to the point where’s he’s almost his own pitching coach.”

*

Heavy stuff: Toronto Raptor star Vince Carter on his coach, Butch Carter: “To lead, first you have to fail.”

*

Calming effect: From comedy writer Earl Hochman: “Following the announcement that he wouldn’t be fired as Indiana’s basketball coach, Knight said he would continue to work on controlling his emotions with help from Mike Ditka.”

*

Looking back: On this day in 1979, Dave Kingman of the Cubs hit three home runs and Mike Schmidt of the Phillies hit two, as Philadelphia beat Chicago in 10 innings at Wrigley Field, 23-22.

There were 11 home runs and 50 hits in the 109 at-bats.

*

Trivia answer: He didn’t score and committed one personal foul.

*

And finally: Dusting off Johnny Carson’s old “Karnak the Magnificent” routine, Steve Rushin of Sports Illustrated had the questions to some sports answers:

A: Rugby.

Q: What’s on Marv Albert’s head?

A: Near beer.

Q: Where is John Daly right now?

A: Pac Bell Park.

Q: For an extra $2 million a year, what would Chan Ho Park change his name to?