Larry looked up and saw Knight walking toward them. He stiffened and readied himself to speak to his head coach for the first time since arriving on campus. Knight walked toward Bird; Bird said hello-and Knight blew by without saying a word..."Larry was used to people being a lot nicer to him. He didn't like Coach Knight's personality." Knight would later regret treating Bird so coldly. "Larry Bird is one of my great mistakes," he said...
The final straw came in late September when Larry received a bill for sixty dollars to cover the fee for a bowling class...after being made to wait for what felt like a long time, he told assistant coach Bob Weltilch about the bill. Weltlich, in a manner that Larry considered abrupt, told Larry that it was his responsibility. End of meeting.
That was it. Larry immediately went back to his room and asked Georgia if she would come pick him up...Larry headed out to Highway 37 and stuck his thumb in the air. Eventually, a man in a pickup truck pulled over to give him a lift out of town.