LUBBOCK, Texas — Bob Knight's son will become Texas Tech's basketball coach when the Hall of Fame coach retires.
The 64-year-old Knight is under contract through May 2009. Pat Knight, a Texas Tech assistant, signed a contract Friday in which he was named coach-designate, school basketball spokesman Randy Farley said Saturday.
"Pat has been instrumental in what we've done here so far and the most selfish thing for me is that I want to see what we've done placed in the hands of the most competent person, and that's Pat," Bob Knight told the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal. "No one would come close to being able to continue to build on what we've done here so far like he will."
Athletic director Gerald Myers said recruiting and continuity were the reasons behind the decision.
Bob Knight coached for 29 years at Indiana and won three NCAA titles until he was fired in 2000 by the school. Texas Tech lost in the regional semifinals of last year's NCAA tournament.
"My job is to prolong his career," Pat Knight told the Avalanche-Journal. "I hope he has a lot of good years left, especially with the recruits we have coming in."
Bob Knight has another son, Tim Knight, Texas Tech's assistant athletic director for men's basketball special projects.