He built a championship team, was snubbed from the all-time greats list, and now has the Pacers back in the NBA Finals

Is Rick Carlisle already one of the best coaches in NBA history? The honest answer would be yes – and it’s fair to say he’s been unfairly overlooked. The Indiana Pacers head coach has not only led the franchise to just its second Finals appearance, but his résumé is also one that many would envy. He was named Coach of the Year in 2002 during his very first season in charge, guiding a young Detroit Pistons team to 50 wins right out of the gate.

After 11 seasons as an assistant, Carlisle has now led teams for 23 years, making the playoffs in 16 of them and winning a championship in 2011 alongside Dirk Nowitzki. He’s had eight 50-win seasons – including this one – and at 65, he’s the second-oldest active coach in the league following Gregg Popovich’s retirement. The oldest? Tom Thibodeau, 67 – whom Carlisle just eliminated in the Eastern Conference Finals. A twist of fate.

Carlisle avoids the NBA spotlight

It’s no surprise Carlisle rarely dominates headlines. His calm and composed nature has always kept him away from the spotlight – he’s let his players take center stage. As a player, he was part of the 1980s Celtics dynasty led by Larry Bird and was on the roster during their 1986 title run. He later learned coaching under Bird himself, when the legend returned home to Indiana to coach the Pacers for three seasons. Bird, true to his word, didn’t stay a day longer – but he made sure Carlisle was ready, promoting his former teammate to offensive assistant. The Pacers didn’t miss a beat in the East and made it to the 2000 Finals, only to be crushed by Shaq and Kobe’s Lakers.

Carlisle had prior assistant gigs with the Nets and Blazers before taking a year off and landing his first head job at 42. He laid the foundation for Detroit’s 2004 title – the team that Larry Brown would later take to the promised land. In Dallas, he inherited a broken project: Avery Johnson’s team had suffered a brutal collapse in the 2006 Finals and a shocking first-round exit in 2007 despite 67 wins and Nowitzki becoming the first European MVP. Carlisle started from scratch in 2008-09, building a no-pressure team full of veterans – Jason Kidd, Shawn Marion, even Peja Stojaković – and brought Dallas the championship they never thought they’d win.

Not even his stormy exit from Dallas – amid rumored tensions with Luka Dončić – changed him. Carlisle never spoke badly of his former franchise or the Slovenian star. That’s just who he is: conflict-averse, scandal-shy, and quietly loyal.

Now, 23 years into his head coaching career, Carlisle is sitting on 993 regular season wins – just seven shy of the 1,000 club. And while he wasn’t named on the NBA’s official list of the 15 greatest coaches ever, it’s striking that his name was left out, but Doc Rivers’ made the cut. Regardless of how this season ends, the Pacers have proven themselves a serious force in these playoffs – sweeping past the Bucks and Cavaliers (both 4-1, with Cleveland having won 63 regular season games) and outlasting the Knicks in six to reach the Finals.

Carlisle, a New York native with Boston roots, has truly become an adopted son of Indiana. And now, he faces the 68-win Thunder – a raw and youthful squad against a Pacers side that’s breaking all the rules and dreaming big. All of it, made possible by Rick Carlisle – undoubtedly one of the greatest coaches in NBA history.

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