Haliburton and Carlisle: The perfect duo at the perfect time
By TYLER SMITH (@TylerSmith_ISL)
ISL Editor
INDIANAPOLIS — There’s been a lot of great coaches in the NBA that have had great players on their team, and a lot of great players that have had great coaches. Many times, the combination still doesn’t fully click. Every once in a while, a pairing comes along at just the right time that ends up being a match made in heaven. For the Indiana Pacers franchise, the Rick Carlisle and Tyrese Haliburton combo has been nothing short of magic.
“If you have the right player to build around, it can happen much faster than you think,” said Carlisle after the Pacers clinched the Eastern Conference Championship. “Tyrese made it very clear what type of team we were going to be.” I’m also reminded of how Carlisle spoke about his point guard from the very beginning: “The guy plays with joy. He’s a special young player to build around.”
For any coach/player relationship to thrive, it starts and ends with trust. There’s an old saying that goes something like this: “Never take criticism from someone you wouldn’t ask for advice.” Tyrese Haliburton has complete confidence in his Head Coach to ask for advice, encouragement, and at times, brutal honesty. The relationship comes first, and the success follows.
Pacers General Manager Chad Buchanan joined “Setting the Pace” on Monday, and offered these words about the Haliburton/Carlisle pairing:
“The combination of Coach Carlisle being such a brilliant coach, and adapting to his personnel, and Tyrese’s talents and leadership ability to make others around him better.. merging those two things together created a real identity for us to try and build this team. When you have the foundation of a phenomenal Head Coach and phenomenal lead guard.. you have two of the most important things to build a championship level team. They’re aligned. Rick trusts Tyrese. Tyrese trusts Rick. That’s a big component of this. The merging of those two pieces.”
Through the ups and downs of a long season, or dealing with his many critics, where does Haliburton turn when things aren’t going well? Look no further than his coach. One reason Haliburton was calm and not showing an ounce of worry or doubt after playoff losses this season, is because of the trust he has in Coach Carlisle. “I feel like coach is a savant when it comes to adjustments and getting the best out of guys. We just follow that lead. His intensity come playoff time is easy to follow. He sets the tone.” After the Game 5 loss to the Knicks, Haliburton said it again: “Everybody on our team is addicted to watching film and getting better, and Coach Carlisle is a savant at stuff like that. We’ll be talking a lot. We’ll improve for Game 6.” And they did.
One of the most impressive things about this relationship is the fact that Rick Carlisle is the long-time coach, Tyrese Haliburton is the new era player, and it has still worked beautifully. Carlisle’s evolution as a Coach across multiple decades in this league is not talked about enough. Legendary Pacers writer and author Mark Montieth put it this way on social media recently:
“When Rick Carlisle first coached the Pacers more than 20 years ago, I referred to his offense as a paint-by-numbers system. Very controlled. He did not want to play at a fast tempo, and perhaps that was best for that particular team. But his players were frustrated at times. I recall one game when the Pacers had a run going, having scored a couple of baskets and gotten a couple of stops. Jamaal Tinsley was bringing the ball up quickly, but Carlisle stood and told him to hold up. Tinsley rolled his eyes in frustration. To see the way the Pacers play now is an amazing contrast and a credit to Carlisle’s ability to adjust to changing trends and talent.”
Earlier in these playoffs, Milwaukee Head Coach Doc Rivers talked about Carlisle’s evolution as well. “I don’t remember his teams being that free-flowing in the past,” Rivers said. “Where Rick has been always good, in my opinion, he just coaches the team he has, and I think he realized early on with Haliburton, that this may be one of those teams where ‘I just have to wind them up and let them go.’ I think that’s why he’s a sensational coach.”
Carlisle went on the Pat McAfee show on Monday and was asked how the Pacers will deal with the Oklahoma City crowd noise. Carlisle joked: “We don’t call plays anyway, so it won’t matter.” That once again speaks to the trust Carlisle and his players have in one another, and the culture that has been built in Indiana.
Last season, it was a historic offense. This season, the emphasis on the defensive end has taken the Pacers to a new level. And for the second time in franchise history, the Pacers are headed to the NBA Finals. They’ve been doubted every step of the way, but this combination never lost their belief. It all started when Rick Carlisle returned, and it all changed the second Tyrese Haliburton walked through the door. It’s a special bond, and it’s a special time. Pacers President Kevin Pritchard and his staff put this duo together and deserve all the praise they are finally getting. With Carlisle and Haliburton leading the way, the state of Indiana has found a team to fall in love with once again.
