‘I just gave him a kiss on his forehead and said, ‘Thank you for everything.’: Calbert Cheaney shares his last moment with Bob Knight

When it comes to the state of Indiana, legendary IU basketball head coach Bob Knight was, and is still to some, the King. There was no one that was more polarizing and respected in the state when it came to basketball than what Bob Knight was during his time as the leader of the Hoosiers.

It is well-documented by this point in time how successful Bob Knight was when he was the head coach. From 1971–2000, Knight led Indiana to three NCAA titles in 1976 (32-0), 1981, and 1987. He also led team USA to a gold medal in 1984 and had a record of 661-240 during his tenure at Indiana.

Knight coached some of the greatest Hoosiers of all time including guys such as Isiah Thomas, Steve Alford, Damon Bailey, Quinn Buckner, and current Indiana basketball head coach Mike Woodson. Perhaps, the greatest player that Bob Knight ever coached was Clabert Cheaney, the all-time leading scorer for both the IU program and the Big Ten overall.

Just a little over a year ago, Bob Knight sadly passed away at the age of 83. It was one of the toughest moments that the program and fanbase had to go through. It was especially hard for players such as Woodson and Cheaeny to comprehend losing a guy that meant so much to them.

“When you lose a legend like Bob Knight, who meant the world to me, man, in terms of my growth, I mean, he basically shaped my whole career,” said Mike Woodson last year. “This program will truly miss an icon. It’s hard to really describe in words what he meant to me, but boy, I wouldn’t be sitting in this seat today if it wasn’t for Bob Knight.

Calbert Cheaney was the guest on this past Monday’s Inside IU Basketball, which is hosted by voice of the Hoosiers and the guy that called nearly every one of Knight’s games he coached, Don Fischer. On the show, Cheaney spoke about the last moment he was able to share with Bob Knight before his passing.

“One of the greatest coaches that I have been blessed to have ever played for,” Cheaney said on Monday night speaking to Don Fischer on Inside IU Basketball.

“A couple weeks before he passed away I was able to go to his house, me and Pat Knight, and we just sat there and hung out with him for about three, four hours when it was all said and done. He was asleep the whole time, and then after I got up and left, he had just woken up.”

“I just gave him a kiss on his forehead and said, ‘Thank you for everything,’…and that was the last time I saw him.”

“If I had a chance to do it all over again, I wouldn’t change a thing.”

More: IU basketball has been leaning on its seniors during late-season winning streak. Why? Because they understand the need of ‘cherishing every moment’

Clabert Cheaney left a lasting mark on the Indiana basketball program during his time wearing the cream and crimson. A lot of his success, as he would admit, was due to the man he was coached by as well as his teammates.

“I think the best memories about being here was my teammates,” Cheaney said. “We had a great group. Chris Reynolds, Pat Graham, Pat Knight, Alan Henderson, Eric Anderson, Jamal Meeks, Lyndon Jones, and Brian Evans. We had a really, really good group of guys that all played hard and we respected one another.”

“There was no ‘I’ in team….. I just happened to be the guy to put the ball in the basket. We had a great group.”

SEE ALSO: IU basketball has its true identity — toughness. And now ‘everybody is all bought into what we want to do’ going into postseason play

Make sure to follow Hoosier Illustrated, part of the Full Ride Network, on Twitter @Indiana_FRN, Facebook and YouTube to stay up to date on all of the news, updates and coverage of Indiana University athletics. You can also listen to the Talking’ Bout the Hoosiers podcast on Spotify.

Looking for a place to get more Indiana content? Hoosier Illustrated has partnered with Tom Brady’s company ‘Autograph’ to streamline our coverage, so you can continue to do what you do best – follow IU sports. Use the CODE: Indianafr to get started today. For more info, you can start here.