Indiana Pacers Players Respond To Rick Carlisle’s Comments

Indiana Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle became the center of attention near the end of Game 2 against the New York Knicks and with his post-game comments. With about a minute left in the game, Carlisle became incensed on the sidelines.

One of the referees blew the whistle for a double-dribble, which upon replays shown on the telecast, was the wrong call. Under the NBA’s rules, a violation of that kind cannot be reviewed, but the referee crew got together and said that an inadvertent whistle was blown, giving the ball back to the Knicks, correctly.

Rick Carlisle was not happy about that, as he berated the referees. When a stoppage of play came, he was assessed a technical foul. Just moments later, he was given another technical, essentially throwing in the towel but making sure he got his money’s worth.

During his post-game press conference, Carlisle once again went at the referees. He made comments about how many calls the Indiana Pacers believe the referees have missed in the first two games, insinuating that the NBA wants the big-market Knicks to advance.

After Carlisle shared his comments, players on the team were asked about what he said and did not agree with his comments. Point guard T.J. McConnell appreciates his coach attempting to stand up for them, but no one in the locker room is making excuses for being down 0-2, especially not blaming referees.

“We love Rick showing that type of energy on the court, but that’s not the feeling that we have in the locker room. We’re not going to sit here and blame officials. We gotta be better. It’s just that simple,” McConnell said.