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The 10 Greatest Coaches in Indiana Pacers History

By Jon Washburn

Mar 21, 2015; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Indiana Pacers head coach Frank Vogel calls out a play from the bench in the second half of the game against the Brooklyn Nets at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. The Brooklyn Nets beat the Indiana Pacers by the score of 123-111. Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 21, 2015; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Indiana Pacers head coach Frank Vogel calls out a play from the bench in the second half of the game against the Brooklyn Nets at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. The Brooklyn Nets beat the Indiana Pacers by the score of 123-111. Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports /
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#2. Larry Brown

Larry Brown
Larry Brown /

Overall: 190-138  

Playoff Record: 22-16

  • 1993-94: 47-35  5th in East, reached Conference Finals; 10-6 in Playoffs
  • 1994-95:  52-30  2nd in East, reached Conference Finals; 10-7 in Playoffs
  • 1995-96:  52-30  3rd in East; 2-3 in Playoffs
  • 1996-97:  39-43  10th in East

Larry Brown isn’t revered and loved in Indiana like Larry Bird. He isn’t as recent as Frank Vogel. He lacks the creative ingenuity of Rick Carlisle. He’s coached 462 teams in his career.

But make no mistake: Larry Brown is one of the most important figures in Indiana Pacers history.

When I sat down with Mark Boyle to talk about the coaches he has covered, I made the mistake of leaving Larry Brown off of my personal “Mt. Rushmore” of Indiana coaches. He was quick to point out my omission.

“Besides Slick, there’s one guy I would put ahead of all of those guys, and that’s Larry Brown,” said Boyle. “It’s not necessarily that he’s a better coach. They’re all good. But his impact on the franchise, I think, was the equal of anyone’s except Slick. If you’ll remember, when he came, the Pacers had never had any success in the NBA. Even Slick, all of his success was in the ABA. They just couldn’t get out of the first round of the playoffs, and Larry [Brown] got them to that place … Those first two years, his impact on the franchise was undeniable.”

Brown’s career ended unceremoniously in Indiana.

In Boyle’s own words, year four was a “disaster” as his personality had worn on the players so much that they had begun to tune him out. And after his time in Indiana fizzled out, and he began making the rounds to teams all across the league, Brown’s impact on the Pacers began to be underrated.

But without Larry Brown, Reggie Miller may never have battled in the Garden in the playoffs. Without Larry Brown, “Winning Time” never gets made. Without Larry Brown, there’s probably no 8 points in 9 seconds.

That alone should be cause for all Pacers fans to remember and honor one of the greatest teachers the game has ever seen.

Next: Up Next: #1. Boom Baby

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