It stands to reason that we never hear about layoffs within what must be TV networks’ most efficient offices, their Departments of Intellectual Dishonesty.

ESPN must devote an entire building to its DOID, the parking spots reserved for the disabled filled by autos dangling blue cards from their rear view mirrors while their drivers rollerblade during lunch.

Last week ESPN announced that it will air a “30-for-30” documentary examining the dubious mental condition of Bobby Knight while he coached Indiana, and the collateral damage it likely had on recruits.

Of course, it will.

Tracing Knight’s relationship with ESPN, we find that for years, while he was coaching at Indiana and later at Texas Tech, he was presented as he so often appeared and was heard: as a lunatic. ESPN’s “Knight Goes Nuts” action reel held as steady a presence on “SportsCenter” as its ABC cross-promotions of “Dancing With the Stars.”

But despite such ample evidence Knight was poorly wired, when he was done coaching, ESPN jumped to hire him as an analyst.

That day in 2008 is when ESPN’s “Knight Goes Nuts” reel was totally removed from view. If Knight was a mentally and physically abusive bully and nut loaf, well, now he’s our nut loaf.

Six years later, the ESPN-Knight partnership ended and the “Knight Goes Nuts” reel was returned to view.

And now ESPN will present a documentary about how Knight, as ESPN previously demonstrated, likely was as mentally unbalanced as he appeared to be on ESPN — except during those six years when he worked for and on ESPN.

Memo From Bristol: “Sorry, we can present nothing to remind or tell viewers that Coach Knight very likely was a dangerous lunatic until he’s no longer on our payroll.”

Tiger Woods, since 1996, has been the beneficiary of TV’s intellectual dishonesty.

Recent viewers of golf, especially on NBC-owned Golf Channel, have found the latest overview of Woods to include claims of a “humbler,” “more likeable” and “far friendlier” man.

Wait a second. For 20-plus years we were told nothing to the contrary. How could there be room for improvement above being both the greatest golfer and human being in the world? Thus for years, though the transparencies and contradictions were so often self-evident, TV steadily told us lies about Woods.

Can hardly wait for the next installment.

To combat such conspicuous intellectual dishonesty, the NCAA is prepared to surrender its steady lie. It has approved a complete reversal of stated policy, mission and public position:

From now on “student-athletes” will be called “athlete-students.”

YES should just say no to strike-zone box

TV’s worst ideas remain those with the best chance to be duplicated then perpetuated.

Now YES’ Yankees telecasts, responding to the wishes of perhaps no one outside of YES, has added one of those computerized strike zone boxes during and over all live pitching.

Does it matter that they’re misleading — providing one-dimensional looks at the three-dimensional — unnaturally intrusive, distracting, always irrelevant and often wrong? Not a bit.

Last Sunday, Giancarlo Stanton took a called strike. He showed no problem with the ump’s call of what appeared to be a good pitch. But on YES, it was outside.

Tuesday against the Yanks, the Rays’ C.J. Cron took a called strike. Cron had no problem with the call, which appeared to be correct. But YES’ box called it a ball.

Wednesday, Stanton, on a two-strike pitch, took outside. Neither pitcher nor catcher conveyed any disapproval of the call, which appeared to be a good one. The only place it was strike was within YES’ computerized box.

The next pitch, Stanton, who’d looked at strike three — as per YES’ box — hit a two-run homer.

How did Mississippi State make it to the women’s NCAA final vs. Notre Dame? It received help — the standard basketball gift — from Final Four opponent Louisville.

Louisville had a three-point lead with 11 seconds left. MSU ball, timeout. With 6 seconds left, instead of fouling, Louisville allowed MSU’s Roshunda Johnson to tie it with a 3. Louisville was then crushed in OT. To be continued …

Not that there won’t be plenty of others to choose from, but if it comes down to the Yanks and Red Sox, remember this little “By the Book” number Thursday that gave Boston a 3-2 win:

The Rays led, 2-0, in the ninth, when manager Kevin Cash, as per his norm, finally found a reliever opponents could crush.

Though his per-inning relievers in the sixth, seventh and eighth had been superb, allowing only one walk among them, everyone has to have a closer. So in came reliably unreliable Alex Colome, who was clobbered for four hits, two walks and two earned runs.

Shut the bunt up!

The Twins’ griping over the Orioles’ Chance Sisco bunting a single past an inviting extreme shift with a 7-0 lead is another indication of modern baseball having lost its mind to its own excessive devices. Sisco was up there to get a hit, right? He got a hit. Now be quiet and play ball.

YES’ David Cone, during the Yankees’ Tuesday home opener, said Didi Gregorius was seen throwing crazy Wiffle Ball pitches on some social media site. Minutes later, YES found it, showed it. Gregorius can play on my dorm hallway Wiffle Ball team starting next semester.

Mark Ruckhaus, a longtime New Jersey high school baseball umpire, has sadly noticed something in recent seasons: An increasing number of schools that no longer have freshmen and/or JV teams.

The bag we’re in: The second game of the Final Four on TBS tipped off a half-hour earlier on a Saturday night than the Villanova-Michigan final, which began at 9:21 on a Monday night. What TV money can do, it always does.

What now goes on at spring training that so many players, the first week of the regular season, become disabled?

Duke fans became enraged, even threatening at the suggestion here that in recruiting Marvin Bagley III sainted coach Mike Krzyzewski had landed a one-and-doner for this past season. Bagley has declared for the NBA, with more headed for Duke likely to do the same.

When I saw Michael Conforto, then 24, take that swing last season, his arm hideously unhinged, flapping like a bed sheet rippled by the wind, I was convinced he’d never play again. It’s good to be wrong.

A Tradition Unlike Any Other: Reader David Brooks writes that the Masters just isn’t the same without tuning to WFAN to listen to Mike Francesa watching it.