Jenny Boucek joined the Indiana Pacers coaching staff last season alongside Head Coach Rick Carlisle who came over after a 13-year stint in Dallas. Boucek brings experience, leadership, and a winning mentality to Indiana.
The first season of Boucek’s tenure with the Indiana Pacers came and went. Her insight on coaching, last season, and the plans for the future of Indiana basketball is exciting.
Boucek started out as a player, where she was a four-year starter at the University of Virginia. After spending time with the Virginia Cavaliers, she would make her way to the WNBA to play one season with the Cleveland Rockers before beginning her coaching career. Boucek would become an assistant coach with the Seattle Storm and win two WNBA championships in 2004 and 2010.
She would then move to the NBA where she would become an assistant coach for the Sacramento Kings for a one-year stint. Then, she would pair up with Rick Carlisle in Dallas from 2018 to 2021 before moving to Indiana to take on the challenge of developing the next young core and future of Indiana Pacers basketball.
You spent a lot of time working with players, going over film and such pregame and at practices, what is the preparation like for a coach to help these players improve?
Boucek was pictured alongside players all season long going over film pregame and working drills at practice. Building those relationships was important to her and anytime she is speaking, players are all ears.
"“There is an art and a science to it because we are all human beings and so I think a holistic approach is the most productive. You can’t deal with them holistically if you don’t know them. The first thing to be really good in developing your players is getting to know them, and their game. Then you can meet them where they are at and hopefully help guide them into where they can be”.“The other thing that good player development coaches do is they don’t try to turn players into something they’re not and that in the journey they have a good sense of who they are and who they can become and let them be fully that. That is the art to it”."
This perspective on developmental coaching is awesome. There are a few players like T.J. McConnell or a Myles Turner who have an identity and are good at least one thing on the court that brings that to life.
The approach of not trying to alter their games in a major way, but instead helping them grow at what they are strong at already certainly helps the connection between the player and the coach.
You have been with Rick Carlisle for some time now, what was it like to go back to Dallas with him and see the reaction from the fans and some players you coached?
After spending three seasons in Dallas with Carlisle, Boucek got to see the fan’s relationship with their championship head coach up close. She built relationships and helped Luka Doncic transition to the NBA game after being drafted in 2018, which is the same year she joined Carlisle’s staff.
"“It was emotional! I had only been there three years so anything that would have been a personal feeling for me was drowned out by what I knew Rick was feeling and feeling that for him. I know there was a lot of mixed emotion and flashbacks for him to things that happened. When the introductions were made I think all the mixed emotions were drowned away and it became just gratitude because the fans were showing respect. I think he was overwhelmed by that and anyone that cares about him was overwhelmed on his behalf”."
From an Indiana Pacers perspective, it was cool to see their former and current head coach be honored for his time in Dallas and to see what he meant to that organization. When Rick returned to the Pacers to coach, it felt right.
When he went back to Dallas in front of thousands of Maverick fans, it was special just watching them celebrate coach Carlisle. Unfortunately for Carlisle, he was unable to coach in the game where Dallas played in Indiana earlier in the season due to being in health and safety protocols. That would be the story of the season for the Indiana Pacers and many other teams around the league.
COVID19 was troublesome throughout this season, affecting you and many coaches directly. What was it like not being able to coach during the season and not being able to have an entire staff/roster for those various 10-day windows?
The Indiana Pacers had several coaches miss time due to health and safety protocols this past season and Boucek was one of those to miss time.
"“I was never as a player somebody to complain about the ball or the court because it is the same for everybody. The people who can embrace the adversity and are adaptable I think are the people that end up on top. It ended up being a unique adventure, but I tried to approach it like that, it was a unique challenge and I love challenges. The coaching staff was playing musical chairs and every night we weren’t sure who was going to be playing, but as long as everyone was ultimately healthy which was the biggest concern that nobody got really sick. I am kind of masochistic about challenges so that didn’t really bother me. It became, can we handle this adversity better than other teams”"
The Pacers certainly fought through adversity this past season. From injuries to COVID-19 and trades, this season felt like two. The NBA trade deadline was as busy as I have ever seen in Indiana and those trades impact everyone in the organization.
The Pacers organization saw a lot of movement during the trade deadline, what was it like to lose a handful of players and an All-Star in Sabonis, and then conversely take in new younger guys?
"“It is one of my least favorite parts of this business is when you have to let guys go whether it is through a cut or a trade. There is such a human element to it and I think if you’re doing team the right way, you connect and that’s what you want. It is always a dilemma first getting into the league as a player and the first time you feel that it is very unique. I made a vow that If this business ever started to harden or change me then I was getting out because I was in it for the people and that is what I am in it for now.”"
Boucek also shared that it gets emotional when guys are moved and she feels proud of that emotion because she cares about these players and they are missed once they go to different places.
The balance of having those feelings for the players who are no longer in town is countered with the embrace for the new players coming into a new situation and trusting that there was a reason for these types of decisions.
Now, Boucek has the task of helping grow a new young core of Indiana Pacers basketball here in Indiana. With the additions of Tyrese Haliburton, Chris Duarte, and Isaiah Jackson last season, there are foundational young pieces that can benefit significantly from a developmental coach with the experience Boucek brings.
With a new roster being built and a good draft situation, what should fans be most excited about in the next Pacers season?
"“When you have a core player like Haliburton, you are hoping to build around him and his strengths. When your best players are complementary, that’s when you start to develop a firm identity which I believe you need to have to attain success in this league. You can’t be good at some things and not great at anything and you don’t really know who you are and what is going to separate you from other teams.”"
The Indiana Pacers had that identity not too many years ago when they were “the tough place to play”. On many occasions, you would hear interviews from players sharing how difficult it was to play in Gainbridge Fieldhouse, especially in the playoffs.
The Pacers hustled, gave it their all, and were defensive-minded at their core. Then there were coaching changes and assistants like Dan Burke would move on from a long stint in Indiana.
It was Frank Vogel, then Nate McMillan, Nate Bjorkgren, and now it is Rick Carlisle steering the ship in a span of seven years. How can one form an identity with a constant change in the captain’s seat?
"“A lot of teams swim in that mediocrity. It at times requires taking steps back to go multiple steps forward which is what we are doing right now, but it also requires establishing an identity that you think can separate you. (Haliburton) is so special in so many ways, I think he is giving us some clues as to the direction we need to go and it is an exciting direction.”"
Where do you see the rookie’s biggest chances for growth heading into the off-season and into their second year?
Chris Duarte and Isaiah Jackson were big hits in last year’s draft and after year one, it seems that their role will be expanded on in this upcoming Pacers season. Last year might have been a down year in Indiana, but this is a journey.
"“If the fans and (coaches) can embrace the journey of growth, it makes life fun when you see it that way. If we can embrace the journey that we are on it can be very fulfilling for all of us. The challenge is to turn the volume down on the results because we don’t always know exactly how it is going to go.”"
How these young players improve from year one to year two is going to be a big factor in the success of next year’s Pacers squad. We have seen pictures of them at practice in Indiana this offseason working with coaches, but what are they working on?
"“We have got these young guys that are extremely hungry, high character, coachable and are really conscientious. They all have their own journeys that they’re on, but at the end of the day we are really trying to emphasize right now is the basketball IQ part and reading the game. It accentuates Tyrese’s strengths, and it is also coach Carlisle’s style of play as a coach – there is some structure but a lot of improvisation. It has been a ton of fun for us coaches because you have to teach differently to really grow in this exponentially. We are training vision, we are training decision making, we are training reads, so we are having a blast right now and we hope it translates to what you see in the stands.”"
Boucek and the rest of the Indiana Pacers’ coaching staff have a vision for how these players can improve and they are enjoying the process of growth each day. It won’t happen overnight in Indiana, but the Pacers are on the right track and the franchise has the tools to improve this roster in many ways this offseason.
Nonetheless, these young players are going to be a big part of Indiana’s next great team.