The Indiana Pacers have one of the best head coaches in the NBA in Rick Carlisle, who always gets more than the sum of the parts out of his roster. While there are plenty of other great coaches in the league, not many can do what Carlisle does, and that will always bode well for Indiana.
Pacers fans have seen it over the past few years, but Carlisle is constantly able to get his teams to exceed expectations and level up their game. This is largely because he is such a great offensive-minded coach that he knows exactly how to play to his players' strengths and turn them into the best version of themselves on the court.
The Pacers have numerous players currently on the team who have had their best years under Carlisle, including Tyrese Haliburton, Andrew Nembhard, Aaron Nesmith, and Obi Toppin, just to name a few.
What makes these jumps impressive is that they were either all castaways from their previous team, or they just didn't have high expectations coming out of the draft. Even so, Carlisle has been able to get the best out of all of these players (and more), and given that he constantly adapts as a coach, this is exactly why he and the Pacers should be in a good position for the long haul.
Rick Carlisle's title experience can help Indiana compete for a long time
Carlisle led the Pacers to their first NBA Finals appearance in over two decades earlier this year and took the best team in the league, the Oklahoma City Thunder, to seven games.
Pacers fans have reason to believe that the New York native can help the team win its first NBA championship in franchise history, and that is especially true considering that he has accomplished this exact feat before.
As the head coach of the Dallas Mavericks in 2011, Carlisle led the franchise to their first (and so far only) title in franchise history. The Mavericks had one All-Star that season in Dirk Nowitzki, and while they had a lot of other notable names on the roster (a 37-year-old Jason Kidd, Jason Terry, and Shawn Marion), their roster was not considered to be among the best in the NBA, at least on paper.
Still, largely due to Carlisle getting the most out of his players and creating a system that worked so well, the Mavericks were able to shock the basketball world and secure their first-ever NBA championship, eliminating some of the league's most notorious players along the way, including LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, and Chris Bosh in the NBA Finals.
The Pacers are not the Mavericks, but they can still relate to having greatly benefited from Carlisle's presence, mostly because he found the perfect way to get the most out of his players on the court.
Indiana utilizes a run-and-gun offense that relies heavily on fast-paced ball movement, pushing the tempo, and keeping its opponents on their toes. It's an incredibly difficult system to pull off, but when it works, it works. This is why Haliburton has developed into an All-NBA player under Carlisle. He is an elite passer and playmaker due to his efficiency and quick decision-making. Carlisle knew exactly how to get the most out of him, and it has paid dividends for him and the team so far.
The same could also be said for Nembhard, who came into the league as a natural point guard but has been a crucial complementary player in the backcourt. He has greatly developed as a defender and secondary ball-handler, and it is because of Carlisle giving him the opportunities to do so.
The Pacers have a bright future, and there are reasons to believe they can return to the NBA Finals soon enough. Plus, if Carlisle was able to take down the "Heatles" back in 2011, imagine what he can do in a non-superteam era.