| | Associated Press
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- Bob Knight's lawyer is questioning a
contract provision that places restrictions on where the former
Indiana coach can next work.
Lawyer Russell Yates said Friday the school cannot dictate where
Knight can and can't coach.
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Davis eyes assistant from
outside Indiana program
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BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- Indiana basketball coach Mike Davis is
considering four candidates -- all without ties to Indiana -- to fill
a spot as a Hoosiers' assistant.
Davis declined to identify the candidates, but said three are
Division I assistants and the other is a junior college head coach.
"We've got two guys in particular that we are planning to bring
in on Monday for interviews," Davis said Friday. "The other two
guys we feel we know well enough that we don't need to bring them
in. Hopefully, we can get someone hired by early in the week."
Davis, an Indiana assistant who succeeded Bob Knight, says it
will be difficult for any of the candidates to leave a stable job
to work for an interim coach.
"In a lot of ways, we're looking for a risk taker," Davis
said. "If things don't go well, there's a good chance this will be
a one-year deal. But if we can have a good year, I think this could
be a great opportunity for someone."
Athletic director Clarence Doninger said Tuesday that Davis and
assistant John Treloar will be considered for the permanent
opening.
Davis celebrated his 40th birthday Friday by preparing for a
weekend recruiting trip that will take him to Louisiana and Iowa.
-- Associated Press
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"We're going to negotiate that or we are going to litigate,"
Yates told The Herald-Times.
Knight's contract, first signed in 1982, says he will forfeit
deferred pay if after leaving Indiana he joins a Division I
basketball program in Indiana or Kentucky or any Big Ten school.
Yates said the restriction is based on the presumption that the
Hall of Fame coach developed special knowledge at Indiana that he
should not be allowed to use against the Hoosiers.
Indiana counsel Dorothy Frapwell said Friday she would have to
consult with the school's legal staff before commenting.
Yates said he does not know if Knight ever intended to coach in
one of the schools specified by his contract.
Even if the noncompete clause is valid, Yates said, it restricts
Knight from coaching at such schools for four years, not eight as
the university says.
Neither side provided The Herald-Times with a complete copy of
the contract.
Indiana has deposited $1.3 million in a deferred compensation
account for Knight over the life of the contract. Yates said the
value of that account has grown to more than $4.5 million with
interest over the years. The money is to be paid to Knight over 10
years.
But whether that payout starts this year or in 2002 and when
Knight's contract expires are points of contention.
Yates also is exploring whether the university should be held
liable for lost income Knight would have received during the next
two years of his contract from TV and basketball camps.
The money -- $700,000 to $800,000 a year, according to Yates -- is
not funneled through the university.
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