The Indiana Pacers stunned the Oklahoma City Thunder with a dramatic 111-110 comeback win in Game 1 of the NBA Finals, and head coach Rick Carlisle offered detailed insight into the team’s mindset during the postgame press conference.
Carlisle acknowledged the rough start, calling the first half “rough” and pointing to the team’s 19 turnovers. “The good thing was it was only nine points,” he said, noting the manageable deficit despite the miscues.
Indiana won the third quarter by three and found themselves down 15 early in the fourth. Carlisle told his players to “just keep chipping away at the rock.” The Pacers closed on a 17-7 run to steal the victory, their fourth one-point win of the postseason.
The postgame locker room remained focused, according to Carlisle. “We haven’t been celebrating a whole lot with anything, really,” he said, crediting team maturity and playoff experience, especially from Pascal Siakam.
Carlisle emphasized that the Pacers must improve, citing the Thunder’s elite defense. “They’re a menace defensively,” he said. “We too often took it into crowds.”
Asked about halftime adjustments, Carlisle said the staff addressed multiple issues, including the turnover disparity and the Thunder’s ability to get to the rim. “It was just hit the reset button,” he added.
Despite the historic comeback—matching the largest fourth-quarter rally in Finals history—Carlisle stayed composed. “We’ve just got to be very much present in the moment,” he said, noting the importance of maintaining poise and aggression.
Carlisle praised Andrew Nembhard’s two-way play down the stretch, highlighting a key defensive stop on Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and a clutch three-pointer. “You’ve got to have playmakers against Oklahoma City,” he said.
The final possession also drew attention. Carlisle shared that during the review of the out-of-bounds call involving Siakam, the team discussed their approach if the ball went to the Thunder. “If we get a stop and get the rebound, we’re going to go,” Carlisle said. That’s exactly what happened—Haliburton received the ball and hit the game-winner with 0.3 seconds left.
Carlisle reflected on Haliburton’s journey since arriving via trade over three years ago. “You look at the present, but you look toward the future,” he said. With Siakam and Nembhard in the closing group, Carlisle believes they now have multiple late-game options.
Asked about the team’s resilience, Carlisle said, “It’s a group that we’ve invested a lot in.” He highlighted continued player development throughout the season, including significant minutes for Jarace Walker and Bennedict Mathurin.
“This series has a lot of intrigue,” Carlisle concluded, referencing both teams’ player development models.
