Kent Benson
- Thread starter sobester
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Just watched an interview with Bird. He said Benson was unbearable and the sole reason he left.
You lost me at “wanted to go to UK.” That explains everything I needed to know. In other words, nothing to know needed after that.
Kent's a very nice guy who is also a Hoosier legend.
I really wish people would stop trying to make Benson out to be the villain regarding Bird; and as with many stories there was more to Bird's quitting the team than just Benson.
I really wish people would stop trying to make Benson out to be the villain regarding Bird; and as with many stories there was more to Bird's quitting the team than just Benson.
Kent should have been better to Larry and I saw a story where Coach Knight walked right past Larry and his mother while they were sitting in the cafeteria. That hurt Larry's feelings. Bottom line, it sounds like Larry did not have any friends, felt isolated, and no one helped him out. Also read that Jim Wisman (sp?) was Larry's roommate and was a clothes horse. Larry was poor and from a very small town. This did not help either.
Yea, it’s pretty easy to picture this playing out and how Larry felt. What a shame.
Always thought that if Larry had stuck at IU, we could have had a run that rivaled the one UCLA had just finished.
I remember back to my first few weeks of college. Our coach wasn't really a "make everyone feel comfortable" type of guy either. Those were some pretty lonely, and frankly tough times...and I was only 30 minutes or so from home. And as good as Bird obviously was, he was joining a historically good basketball program, that quite frankly, didn't need him at that point in time.
Putting myself in RMK and the coaching staff's shoes... Fall of 74... Their thoughts are probably squarely on how dominant that team was going to be. So the distraction of having to take care of a homesick freshman...as common a courtesy as that now seems, probably wasn't too high on their priority list.
If he would have been ready to contribute his freshman year, we would have won the natty in both 75 and 76. After that, Bird, Benson, Radford, some talented younger guys... would have had a chance in 77. And then gotta think would have been a favorite again in 78. Obviously tons of momentum at that point, more so than we already had. Woodson coming along, who knows what 79 and 80 look like.
I wasn't homesick either... its just a hard overall adjustment period for some.
He might be lying, but in that interview I posted he was pretty clear it was Benson.
I'm surprised Isiah spoke so freely about his teammate (Benson).
Larry Bird is one of the biggest assholes to ever inhabit planet Earth. Period.
If Benson was a jerk to Bird, I have no doubt in my mind that he deserved it and more.
If Benson was a jerk to Bird, I have no doubt in my mind that he deserved it and more.
I am not so sure Bird would become Bird under Knight. I guess he was under Knight when he got here and that didn't work out.
didn't bird quit the indiana all star team? clearly a very emotional young man.
No, it was Sherron Wilkerson who quit the 1993 All-star team.
Larry was a bench player for Coach Overman’s All-Star team. Late in the second game in a lopsided victory, an assistant coach had to remind Overman he hadn’t played Bird in awhile so he called his name and a pissed off Bird refused to fly from his coup. Bird had been consistently overlooked in practices and exhibition games, despite performing well.
Almost, but not quite. Sherron’s inaction was perceived at the time as more egregious, costing him forfeiture of his Mr Basketball title. All it got Bird was butt-hurt, leaving him a bitter man to shower. We never heard of the incident until years later in a book, pretty much, don’t you think?
Bird’s personality, aka lack thereof, probably was the reason he was overlooked on the HS All-Star series AND during his early “daze” on IU’s campus. Like I’ve always said about my second ex-wife, “The quiet ones…once you figure out what it is they’re thinking, too late has already come and gone.” So it was with this one and for that I’ll always be grateful.
I’ve had this constant ringing in my ears for quite some time…18-year cicadas, every year, night and day. I miss some things, hearing the locusts I do. You should, too.
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