Indiana University Athletics
Buckner's Board of Trustees Appointment a Great Honor, Big Responsibility
11/4/2019 12:46:00 PM | Indiana MBB
Quinn Buckner's catalog of accomplishments is robust.
NCAA Champion, NBA World Champion, and Olympic Gold Medalist all fit as descriptors of his success on the basketball court. A four-time Big Ten champion at IU who captained the Hoosiers' undefeated 1976 squad and the U.S. Olympic team that same year, Buckner is one of only three basketball players to ever win championships at the state, college, NBA and Olympic levels.
Since concluding his playing career 34 years ago, his subsequent professional endeavors have been equally successful and notable. Currently the Vice President of Communications for Pacers Sports & Entertainment, Buckner is a former NBA head coach and national TV basketball analyst who has also enjoyed a successful financial services career.
But for a person who has accomplished a lot of big things in his life, one stands out as a little – actually a lot – bigger than the others.
"Being a member of the IU Board of Trustees is as high an honor, short of family, as you can have," Buckner said. "It's beyond my athletic career. It's one of the greatest things I've ever done."
Three years into his term as a member of the Indiana University Board of Trustees, Buckner speaks with reverence about a role and responsibility that he welcomed, but didn't necessarily seek. He received a phone call from an acquaintance who wanted to judge his interest in an appointment to the position. Buckner said he was caught off guard by the inquiry because it wasn't anything he'd ever considered.
But once it was obvious that the opportunity might in fact be there, Buckner's answer was obvious.
"I didn't even have to think twice," Buckner said.
Once he began serving, the big shock of this big honor quickly evolved into the realization that this was a big responsibility. As Indiana University's governing body, the nine-member Board of Trustees works in close concert with the university president to shape the direction and growth of Indiana University and its nine-campus system. With Indiana University's 200-year history and its role as the institution that educates more Hoosiers than any other, the significance of the role and the depth of the responsibility is undeniable.
"It's one of the great institutions in the world," Buckner said. "In terms of research, the Kelley School, the School of Medicine, IU Health, the Jacobs School, we have great resources at our institution. You can't find a place that can bring more to society than Indiana University. You just can't, in all aspects of life."
While Indiana University brings a great deal to the state, the nation and the world, Buckner has brought a great deal to its governing board. With a background in athletics, communications and finance, he has expertise in those specific areas to offer. In addition to those experiences, he's also brought a keen interest and focus on what Indiana University does and can do in minority, lower socio-economic and rural communities.
He's also brought a belief in and approach to teamwork to the Board of Trustees that has been shaped in large part by his experiences as a basketball player at Indiana University more than 40 years ago. And while the differences between a basketball game played in front of 17,000-plus fans and a Board of Trustees meeting could not be starker, there is plenty that Buckner can carry over from his experiences when he wore an IU uniform and played for Coach Bob Knight.
"I really do look at this as being part of a team, and I want to hold up my part of the deal for the people in the state of Indiana and my colleagues on the board," Buckner said. "I want to be sure I'm part of the dialogue and ask questions and learn and hopefully create some discussion that is beneficial to everybody.
"That's the way I played. Coach Knight sometimes didn't care for it too much, but I'm a curious personality. I'd ask questions to just be clear what the mission is. With clarity, I think you have a better chance of success understanding what the mission is and understanding what your roles are as part of the mission. I think that's the case for all of us."
To achieve that clarity, Buckner points to a single most important element.
"The most important factor of any successful effort is communication," Buckner said. "I think that's why the teams that I was blessed to be a part of were successful. Ultimately, you want everyone to chime in and have a robust discussion so you can be working from the same set of facts. Not everyone is going to agree and there are going to be different opinions. But like I learned from Coach Knight, you can disagree, but once a decision is made, the people in that room, we need to support it wholeheartedly."
Another thing that Buckner has learned both as a player and as a professional is that not everyone is an effective communicator. He's observed that those who have been successful in team sports are more likely than others to have that trait that he values so much.
"I see it in the workforce. I see it with the Pacers. I can tell people who have played successfully with teams and, believe it or not, I can tell people who have struggled with it," Buckner said. "In a team sport, the communication aspect is at the highest level. When you have a mission that requires a coordinated effort, the communication and the trust and the integrity in your conversations and your relationships are far more important."
While the ability to communicate openly and effectively isn't unique to individuals who have successfully competed in team sports, Buckner wants student-athletes to recognize and appreciate the value of this skill, one that many learn during their time competing for and representing IU as student-athletes.
By doing so, they can do what Buckner did when he first came to IU and did his best to heed an important piece of advice he received from his late father.
"My dad's biggest want for me was to not let basketball or any athletics use me – he wanted me to use it," Buckner said. "For me that was using basketball to get an education from one of the best business schools in the country, which I got because of basketball. From there, you can create a life to live the way you want to live. That's what I have been blessed to be able to do, and what athletes have to try to aspire to."
By making the most of that skill and using it to their advantage after their IU playing days are over, Buckner hopes that current student-athletes can achieve things that they didn't necessarily think were possible.
"I didn't know that I could ever do anything like this," Buckner said. "I'm a kid from 3,000 people that happened to be all black, and I didn't know that there would be an opportunity at any institution, let alone Indiana University, to be on the Board of Trustees.
"But I am, and for that I'm eternally grateful. Hopefully that inspires others to achieve something of this kind. Because it's one of the great things that I've ever done."
NCAA Champion, NBA World Champion, and Olympic Gold Medalist all fit as descriptors of his success on the basketball court. A four-time Big Ten champion at IU who captained the Hoosiers' undefeated 1976 squad and the U.S. Olympic team that same year, Buckner is one of only three basketball players to ever win championships at the state, college, NBA and Olympic levels.
Since concluding his playing career 34 years ago, his subsequent professional endeavors have been equally successful and notable. Currently the Vice President of Communications for Pacers Sports & Entertainment, Buckner is a former NBA head coach and national TV basketball analyst who has also enjoyed a successful financial services career.
But for a person who has accomplished a lot of big things in his life, one stands out as a little – actually a lot – bigger than the others.
"Being a member of the IU Board of Trustees is as high an honor, short of family, as you can have," Buckner said. "It's beyond my athletic career. It's one of the greatest things I've ever done."
Three years into his term as a member of the Indiana University Board of Trustees, Buckner speaks with reverence about a role and responsibility that he welcomed, but didn't necessarily seek. He received a phone call from an acquaintance who wanted to judge his interest in an appointment to the position. Buckner said he was caught off guard by the inquiry because it wasn't anything he'd ever considered.
But once it was obvious that the opportunity might in fact be there, Buckner's answer was obvious.
"I didn't even have to think twice," Buckner said.
Once he began serving, the big shock of this big honor quickly evolved into the realization that this was a big responsibility. As Indiana University's governing body, the nine-member Board of Trustees works in close concert with the university president to shape the direction and growth of Indiana University and its nine-campus system. With Indiana University's 200-year history and its role as the institution that educates more Hoosiers than any other, the significance of the role and the depth of the responsibility is undeniable.
"It's one of the great institutions in the world," Buckner said. "In terms of research, the Kelley School, the School of Medicine, IU Health, the Jacobs School, we have great resources at our institution. You can't find a place that can bring more to society than Indiana University. You just can't, in all aspects of life."
While Indiana University brings a great deal to the state, the nation and the world, Buckner has brought a great deal to its governing board. With a background in athletics, communications and finance, he has expertise in those specific areas to offer. In addition to those experiences, he's also brought a keen interest and focus on what Indiana University does and can do in minority, lower socio-economic and rural communities.
He's also brought a belief in and approach to teamwork to the Board of Trustees that has been shaped in large part by his experiences as a basketball player at Indiana University more than 40 years ago. And while the differences between a basketball game played in front of 17,000-plus fans and a Board of Trustees meeting could not be starker, there is plenty that Buckner can carry over from his experiences when he wore an IU uniform and played for Coach Bob Knight.
"I really do look at this as being part of a team, and I want to hold up my part of the deal for the people in the state of Indiana and my colleagues on the board," Buckner said. "I want to be sure I'm part of the dialogue and ask questions and learn and hopefully create some discussion that is beneficial to everybody.
"That's the way I played. Coach Knight sometimes didn't care for it too much, but I'm a curious personality. I'd ask questions to just be clear what the mission is. With clarity, I think you have a better chance of success understanding what the mission is and understanding what your roles are as part of the mission. I think that's the case for all of us."
To achieve that clarity, Buckner points to a single most important element.
"The most important factor of any successful effort is communication," Buckner said. "I think that's why the teams that I was blessed to be a part of were successful. Ultimately, you want everyone to chime in and have a robust discussion so you can be working from the same set of facts. Not everyone is going to agree and there are going to be different opinions. But like I learned from Coach Knight, you can disagree, but once a decision is made, the people in that room, we need to support it wholeheartedly."
Another thing that Buckner has learned both as a player and as a professional is that not everyone is an effective communicator. He's observed that those who have been successful in team sports are more likely than others to have that trait that he values so much.
"I see it in the workforce. I see it with the Pacers. I can tell people who have played successfully with teams and, believe it or not, I can tell people who have struggled with it," Buckner said. "In a team sport, the communication aspect is at the highest level. When you have a mission that requires a coordinated effort, the communication and the trust and the integrity in your conversations and your relationships are far more important."
While the ability to communicate openly and effectively isn't unique to individuals who have successfully competed in team sports, Buckner wants student-athletes to recognize and appreciate the value of this skill, one that many learn during their time competing for and representing IU as student-athletes.
By doing so, they can do what Buckner did when he first came to IU and did his best to heed an important piece of advice he received from his late father.
"My dad's biggest want for me was to not let basketball or any athletics use me – he wanted me to use it," Buckner said. "For me that was using basketball to get an education from one of the best business schools in the country, which I got because of basketball. From there, you can create a life to live the way you want to live. That's what I have been blessed to be able to do, and what athletes have to try to aspire to."
By making the most of that skill and using it to their advantage after their IU playing days are over, Buckner hopes that current student-athletes can achieve things that they didn't necessarily think were possible.
"I didn't know that I could ever do anything like this," Buckner said. "I'm a kid from 3,000 people that happened to be all black, and I didn't know that there would be an opportunity at any institution, let alone Indiana University, to be on the Board of Trustees.
"But I am, and for that I'm eternally grateful. Hopefully that inspires others to achieve something of this kind. Because it's one of the great things that I've ever done."
Darian DeVries Postgame Press Conference
Thursday, November 13
IUBB Postgame Press Conference
Thursday, November 13
FB: Under the Hood with Indiana Football - Week 12 (Wisconsin)
Thursday, November 13
IUWBB Highlights vs. Marshall
Wednesday, November 12