Ex-Pitt, NBA star Knight has his day in Braddock
Atlanta Hawks.
Knight stays connected with his past, one that was brought back into the spotlight in May when Pitt announced him as one of 16 inductees for its inaugural hall of fame class. He maintains a strong bond with Pitt and keeps regular tabs on his alma mater, particularly the movement and turnover that has defined the men’s basketball program the past several years.
“I think [newly hired] coach [Jeff] Capel is going to do a great job as the basketball coach,” Knight said. “I think this athletic director [Heather Lyke] has brought in a whole different, new thinking and an innovative way of doing things. She has a very refreshing approach to the Pitt athletic world. I’m looking forward to it. I think it’s going to be a very good change. It’s going to be a pleasant change.”
Since his tenure as the Hawks’ general manager ended in 2008, Knight, who turned 66 in June, has enjoyed what amounts to retirement.
Around the time he turned 30, Knight was in search of a physical activity other than basketball to keep him occupied during the offseason and soon discovered a passion for tennis. He plays compulsively to this day, scratching the competitive itch that stayed with him even after his basketball career ended.
Though he lives nearly 700 miles away, Knight makes it back to Western Pennsylvania as much as he can, often to catch up with friends. When he got a call from some of his old friends in Braddock wondering the next time he would be back in town, Knight didn’t think much of it, assuming they just wanted to grab lunch.
What he got was something else entirely.
Awaiting him at the restaurant were not only old friends from the neighborhood — including someone who, until he introduced himself, Knight didn’t realize lived across the street from him growing up — but a decorated collection of local players who Knight either played with or competed against at one point or another.
Among those in attendance were Terry Knight, his younger brother, and former teammate Kirk Bruce, both of whom played at Pitt; Hosea Champine and Jeff Baldwin, both former Duquesne players; Pete Harris and Eric Jefferson, both Braddock natives who went on to play for Jim Calhoun at Northeastern; former Robert Morris coach Matt Furjanic, who began his coaching career at Braddock; and Bill Neal, the longtime director of the Connie Hawkins Summer League.
A man so often and understandably greeted reverentially was, at least for one afternoon, “Mooney,” a nickname Knight was given when he was younger. Together with those closest to him, reconnecting over stories and other memories, he was home.
“We all grew up together,” Knight said. “It’s just good to get back and see everybody, have a few laughs and tell a few stories. Some of them are exaggerated by now, but we’re still telling stories.”