Indiana Pacers: 3 immediate reactions to the Rick Carlisle hire

The Indiana Pacers appear ready to spend big money—finally

Close followers of the Indiana Pacers are probably not only surprised by the abrupt news of hiring Rick Carlisle. They are probably also be shocked by the fact that the franchise actually spent a lot of money for a coaching hire.

With his reputation, Carlisle is easily worth more than seven million per season. However, the realistic projection for the Pacers with their coaching hunt was that they would be inclined to hire a veteran coach for a reasonable amount of money— reasonable on pure, numerical basis of “how much” which, given Indiana’s precedents, is not too lucrative.

That the management handed out such sizeable money to Rick Carlisle may have been out of control, especially with his pedigree demanding lofty money, but it should also signify that the team franchise is starting to not cave to spending big anymore, which has streamlined their roster-building capacity for years already.