Pacers reward coach Rick Carlisle for NBA Finals run with mulityear contract extension
Get Starting Point
A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday.
Enter Email
Sign Up
After taking a year off from coaching, he was hired by the Mavericks. Carlisle became the longest-tenured coach and winningest coach in franchise history, going 555-478 in 13 seasons while leading the Mavs to the NBA crown in 2010-11.
Advertisement
In June 2021, he stepped down in Dallas and one week later was hired by the Pacers for one big reason.
'Herb Simon, the Simon family, Steven Rales, Kevin Pritchard, and our players make Indiana such a special place. Let's go!' Carlisle said, referring to the team owners and management.
The Pacers struggled in his first two seasons back in the organization, going 60-114 during yet another attempt by Indiana to rebuild around a group of young players.
Advertisement
But as Carlisle adapted his coaching style to play at a faster, more aggressive pace, it paid dividends each of the past two seasons. Indiana reached the Eastern Conference finals for the first time in a decade in 2024 and last season made their first Finals appearance since 2000.
Haliburton is expected to miss all of next season as he recovers.
In eight seasons with the Pacers, Carlisle has gone 338-318. He's recorded the most wins in the franchise's NBA history and starts this season needing seven wins to become the 11th NBA coach with 1,000 career wins.
Only one active coach, Bucks coach Doc Rivers, has more victories than Carlisle, who led the Pacers past the Bucks in first-round playoff series each of the past two years.
He grew up in New York, near the Canadian border, played college basketball at Virginia, and was a teammate of Hall of Famer Larry Bird on the Celtics' 1986 title team.
Carlisle also was an assistant on Bird's coaching staff when the Pacers made their first Finals appearance and has become a fan favorite in his adopted hometown.
'We are thrilled to have him continue leading our team and representing our organization well into the future,' Pritchard said.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
USA Today
a few seconds ago
- USA Today
Shaq accepts boxing match with man who 'chopped me in my neck'
Shaquille O'Neal, the former NBA superstar, says he's ready to lace them up. No, not high-top sneakers. Boxing gloves. O'Neal, 53, has accepted a celebrity fight with Charles 'Charlie Mack'' Alston, a former bodyguard for actor Will Smith and a figure in the hip hop industry who has indicated he is in his 50s. In an Instagram video challenging O'Neal to fight, Alston this week explained the two men have a beef dating back to an encounter years ago. 'We were in Dallas doing an autograph signing, and (O'Neal) came and tried to jump in front of the line,' Mack said. 'I chopped him in his neck so he could get back.'' During the interview, Alston sat next to Damon Feldman, CEO of Officially Celebrity Boxing O'Neal accepted the fight in the comments section of Alston's video then posted his own video on Instagram. 'Hey celebrity boxing and Charlie Mack, I accept,'' O'Neal said. 'You name the time and place, I'll be there. Diesel don't run from nobody.'' In the video, the 7-foot-1 Hall of Famer also referred to his beef with Alston. "You chopped me in my neck, Charlie Mack, that's why I talk so funny. Payback time," O'Neal said. 'You name the time and place, I'll be there. Diesel don't run from nobody. … You better check my police record, Charlie Mack." On Tuesday, Mack wrote on his Instagram page, 'So I call Big Fella @shaq out yesterday & he accepted as I knew he would!!!! We've been talking about it way too long, now we MUST get it ON!!!!!!!!'' The latest on Mack's Instagram: the image of a fight-style poster featuring O'Neal and Mack. O'Neal weighed about 325 pounds during his 19-year NBA career. Mack is about 6-foot-6 and 290 pounds, according to a rap song recorded by Will Smith when he was rapping as 'The Fresh Prince.'' 'Me and you, baby, super heavyweight,'' Mack said on the video, adding that he was calling O'Neal 'Sha-knocked out.' That's what you're going to be.''
Yahoo
29 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Lakers jersey history No. 4 — Luke Walton
Through the 2024-25 season, the Los Angeles Lakers have had a total of 506 players suit up for them, going back to their days in Minneapolis. Some were forgettable, some were serviceable, some were good and a select few were flat-out legendary. As the Lakers approach their 80th season of existence (they were founded back in 1946 as the Detroit Gems in the National Basketball League), LeBron Wire is taking a look at each player who has worn their jersey, whether it has been a purple and gold one or the ones they donned back in the Midwest during their early years. Here's a look at Luke Walton, a forward who played for the Lakers during a good chunk of the Kobe Bryant era. Walton, the son of Hall of Famer Bill Walton, played four seasons of college basketball at the University of Arizona under legendary coach Lute Olson and earned two straight first-team All-Pac 10 selections. The Lakers took him in the second round of the 2003 NBA Draft after his senior season with the Wildcats. The 6-foot-8 forward lacked the ability to score and was relatively unathletic by NBA standards. But he found his place within Lakers coach Phil Jackson's triangle offense, and he became adept at facilitating the offense and setting up the correct sequences. During his rookie season, the team reached the NBA Finals, and although it lost there in five games to the Detroit Pistons, he made a definite contribution in Game 2 with seven points, eight assists, five rebounds and two blocks. Los Angeles won that game in overtime, 99-91. The younger Walton stuck around long enough to win back-to-back championships with the Lakers in 2009 and 2010. His tenure with them came to an end late in the 2011-12 season when they traded him to the Cleveland Cavaliers. He remained a member of the Cavs until the end of the following season. He later became an assistant coach of the Golden State Warriors during the 2014-15 campaign. Two years later, the Lakers brought him back as their head coach, a post he held until he left at the end of the 2018-19 season. The younger Walton then spent two seasons and change as the Sacramento Kings' head coach. This article originally appeared on LeBron Wire: Lakers jersey history No. 4 — Luke Walton
USA Today
30 minutes ago
- USA Today
Lakers jersey history No. 4 — Luke Walton
Through the 2024-25 season, the Los Angeles Lakers have had a total of 506 players suit up for them, going back to their days in Minneapolis. Some were forgettable, some were serviceable, some were good and a select few were flat-out legendary. As the Lakers approach their 80th season of existence (they were founded back in 1946 as the Detroit Gems in the National Basketball League), LeBron Wire is taking a look at each player who has worn their jersey, whether it has been a purple and gold one or the ones they donned back in the Midwest during their early years. Here's a look at Luke Walton, a forward who played for the Lakers during a good chunk of the Kobe Bryant era. Walton, the son of Hall of Famer Bill Walton, played four seasons of college basketball at the University of Arizona under legendary coach Lute Olson and earned two straight first-team All-Pac 10 selections. The Lakers took him in the second round of the 2003 NBA Draft after his senior season with the Wildcats. The 6-foot-8 forward lacked the ability to score and was relatively unathletic by NBA standards. But he found his place within Lakers coach Phil Jackson's triangle offense, and he became adept at facilitating the offense and setting up the correct sequences. During his rookie season, the team reached the NBA Finals, and although it lost there in five games to the Detroit Pistons, he made a definite contribution in Game 2 with seven points, eight assists, five rebounds and two blocks. Los Angeles won that game in overtime, 99-91. The younger Walton stuck around long enough to win back-to-back championships with the Lakers in 2009 and 2010. His tenure with them came to an end late in the 2011-12 season when they traded him to the Cleveland Cavaliers. He remained a member of the Cavs until the end of the following season. He later became an assistant coach of the Golden State Warriors during the 2014-15 campaign. Two years later, the Lakers brought him back as their head coach, a post he held until he left at the end of the 2018-19 season. The younger Walton then spent two seasons and change as the Sacramento Kings' head coach.
