Rick Carlisle needs to remember the Pacers are playing with house money

The Indiana Pacers lost their third straight game to the Boston Celtics on Saturday. They let an 18-point lead slip through their fingers. It's the second time in three games that Rick Carlisle's young team has let go of the rope and lost from a winning position. As such, the veteran head coach was as expected frustrated and defiant during his postgame news conference.

“Believe me when I tell you, we are going after them,” Carlisle said. "We’re going to be undeterred. We’re going to be back here Monday night, looking to extend the series, and we’re going to come at them even harder.”

Carlisle is a championship-winning head coach. He has also turned the Pacers around since re-joining the franchise. However, he must realize that his young team is playing with house money. Nobody expected them to be in the conference finals. And nobody was expecting them to overcome a Celtics roster that has dominated the NBA all season. Especially after Tyrese Haliburton re-aggravated a hamstring injury in Game 2.

By all means, be aggressive in your approach and frustrated that another winnable game slipped through your fingers. But don't burden your young and exciting team with comments that ramp up the pressure and spotlight. Let the young Pacers enjoy this experience. If they lose this series, so what? They will all be better for this deep run and the experience they have gathered. Playing in the conference finals will expedite the individual improvements for multiple players on the roster.

Indiana was always a year or two away from being a legitimate contender. They have to sort out their defense before they can be taken seriously. Carlisle likely knew this. So yes, be competitive, show some pride and fight to extend the series. But don't pressure the players and suck the fun out of a magical postseason run. They've earned the right to enjoy where they are, regardless of whether the Celtics sweep them or not. 

This Pacers team will be back in the conference finals. This year was all about experience. There's nothing wrong with that.