Rick Carlisle named Eastern Conference Coach of the Month for J..
Rick Carlisle named Eastern Conference Coach of the Month for January
Source: Patrick McDermott / Getty
Rick Carlisle named Eastern Conference Coach of the Month for January
Indiana Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle was honored as the Eastern Conference Coach of the Month for January after his team led the NBA with a 10-2 record.
Every other team had at least four losses.
It was his second time winning the award in Indiana, but you have to go back to November 2003 — they went 13-2 — for his first time.
It’s been more than six years since a Pacers head coach was the recipient, since Nate McMillan in December 2018. Other Pacers head coaches to win it: Dick Versace, Larry Brown, Larry Bird, Isiah Thomas (2x), Frank Vogel (4x), and McMillan (2x).
“There is no job more difficult in this league,” team president Kevin Pritchard once said of the position as head coach. “A head coach has a lot of spears pointed right at him after every minute, after every game, after every day.”
This only happens when the team has success and stacks wins, something coaches often speak about. Team success leads to individual accolades, which also included Pascal Siakam and Tyrese Haliburton being nominees for Eastern Conference Player of the Week — which was won by Cleveland’s Donovan Mitchell.
And that’s, indeed, what Carlisle shared pregame (via IndyStar’s Dustin Dopirak):
“The only significant success that we have is going to be team related,” he said in Salt Lake City. “This is just a nod to the group and how they’ve persevered through difficult stretches and being able to get on a roll here.”
The Pacers started the season 10-15, then had four days between games because of the NBA Cup. That’s when the full turnaround began. It also coincided with the return of guard Andrew Nembhard to regular minutes after he was sidelined for almost a month due to injury.
One more later, on Jan. 16, Aaron Nesmith returned on a minutes restriction.
Since Dec. 13, the Pacers are 17-5 and they also flipped the script on the road — starting 2-10 and then going 10-2.
What stood out most in January: their scoring was up almost five points per game, turnovers were among the best in the league, and their defense ranked third.
Yes, third.
For context, it ranked 21st in December games and 24th in November.
By doing so, they’ve risen up the Eastern Conference standings, to fourth, behind the Cavs, Celtics, and Knicks.
The Pacers (27-20) begin a four-game trip out west on Tuesday with games against the Jazz, Trail Blazers, Clippers, and Lakers.
January By The Numbers (per game)
- Points: 119.5 | fifth
- +/-: 10.3 | second
- FG%: 50.3 | second
- 3FG%: 38.4 | fifth
- Assists: 30.4 | second
- Steals: 9.3 | fifth
- Turnovers: 12 | second
- Opponent points: 109.2 | seventh
- Defensive rating: 109.7 | third
Scott Agness is in his 13th season as a beat writer covering the Indiana Pacers. Click here to read more of his work at FieldhouseFiles.com.