Ex-longtime Beloit College head basketball coach, 'Father of the Three-Point Shot' Bill Knapton dies

A logo for Beloit College.Photo byCm300883/Wikimedia Commons

As head coach of the men's basketball program at Beloit College for several decades, Bill Knapton was a staple of sports in south-central Wisconsin and the surrounding area. For a significant chunk of his tenure as coach, he was also the school's athletic director and along the way he played a pivotal role in one of the most significant rule changes in basketball history. Knapton passed away on August 5, 2024.

A young Knapton was a two-sport star at what is now the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse, eventually captaining both the basketball and baseball squads. Afterward, he took a job as a high school head basketball coach in Stevens Point, Wisconsin. In 1954, he led the team to a state title before joining the coaching staff at Marquette University as an assistant, helping them reach the Elite Eight in 1955.

Two years later, Knapton was hired as the new head coach of the Beloit Buccaneers basketball team, following up on the highly successful tenure of famed coach Dolph Stanley. During the next four decades, he was at the helm of 10 Midwest Conference Championships teams and was named as the conference's Coach of the Year in 1981.

During the 1980s, Knapton was a member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association committee that was tasked with deciding whether or not to implement the three-point shot at the collegiate level. When it was time to vote, he was initially against the idea the committee was deadlocked. He was eventually persuaded to change his mind and went on to cast the deciding vote in favor of officially introducing the three-pointer. As such, Knapton would be coined as the 'Father of the Three-Point Shot' by some. He also had a stint as President of the National Association of Basketball Coaches.

Among Knapton's circle of friends were iconic Duke University men's basketball head coach Mike Krzyzewski and NBA and Bradley University head coach Stan Albeck. During Albeck's brief tenure in charge of the Chicago Bulls, the team - including a young Michael Jordan - trained at the Beloit College campus before the start of the season in 1985.

Knapton took on an active role in a number of other sports at Beloit College, including being head baseball and golf coach. The school's basketball and volleyball court has been named after him and he was inducted into its Athletic Hall of Honor. Additionally, he was enshrined as part of the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse's Wall of Fame.

Bill Knapton was a native of Bloomer, Wisconsin and a veteran of the United States Navy. He had four children with his wife, Joan.