Indiana Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle addressed the media ahead of the NBA Finals, offering insight into his approach as his team prepares to face the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Carlisle, who coached the Dallas Mavericks to a title as underdogs in 2011, drew parallels to that run but stressed the unique challenges this year’s Finals present.
“Oklahoma City’s a great team,” Carlisle said. “We’ve got a lot of work cut out for us.”
He pointed to the Thunder’s defensive pressure, noting the importance of ball security against a team that “turns people over at a historic rate.”
Carlisle emphasized that his group has experienced adversity before and must “play our game at the best possible level” to compete with the top seed in the West.
The series features two of the league’s smaller markets, prompting a question about what coaching in Indiana means to him.
“When you have a good situation, you’re working with great people, and your team is good—that’s a great place to live,” Carlisle said.
He praised the Thunder’s organization and reflected on his long-standing connection with Oklahoma City general manager Sam Presti, dating back to their days in San Antonio.
Carlisle credited Presti’s rise to “resourcefulness and wherewithal,” and called both Presti and Indiana’s Kevin Pritchard “two of the best franchise builders around.”
He reiterated his hope that the series will be defined by the quality of play, not market size.
“This really, hopefully, is about the quality of the games,” he said. “We got our work cut out for us.”
Asked about the future of NBA stardom, Carlisle said the league’s health is strong thanks to “great young players” who promote the game through unselfish play.
“It’s moving away from an isolation league to really more of a team-type game,” he noted.
He also responded to news of Tom Thibodeau’s departure from New York, calling it “surprising” and expressing respect for the longtime coach.
“I thought it was one of those fake AI things,” Carlisle said, reacting to the news when it broke. “There’s not much else to say.”
On his own journey, Carlisle spoke about growing up in upstate New York and being inspired by local star Hal Cohen, whose success gave others belief.
“I worked hard too,” Carlisle said. “But seeing Hal do that gave a lot more guys in the North Country belief about being able to go to higher levels.”
The Pacers will face the Thunder in Game 1 of the NBA Finals on Thursday night in Oklahoma City.
