Rick Carlisle Reveals Biggest Reason Pacers Could Lose NBA Finals

The Indiana Pacers and Oklahoma City Thunder are tied at two games apiece in the NBA Finals, though the Thunder hold home-court advantage and have the momentum.

During the final moments of Game 4, the Pacers were in control and on their way to a 3-1 advantage, but the offense completely sputtered at the wrong time.

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Indiana lost the game after missed free throws and poor shot creation, two areas where coach Rick Carlisle knows need to be better going forward.

“We just got too stagnant,” Pacers coach Rick Carlisle told reporters after the game.

“The ball was not being advanced quickly enough. We weren’t creating problems, and we were up against the clock a lot. So things got very difficult, but you gotta give Oklahoma (City) credit. They made it very difficult.”

The Pacers shot 42.5% from the field and only 30.6% from three during Game 4, and 75.8% on free throws.

Carlisle and the team need answers on offense for the defensive problems that Oklahoma City possess, namely the physicality and athleticism.

The Thunder are playing hard on every possession, switching, trapping, and completely swarming whoever is on the ball.

They make the Pacers earn every bucket, and while Indiana has good shot-makers, it is tough to really rely on it consistently.

Considering how hard the Pacers work to score in the half-court, Carlisle could draw up some more set actions, using off-ball movement and screens to generate some easy looks.

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On Monday, the Pacers have a chance to move past the devastating defeat, though Carlisle knows winning the NBA Championship is a massive challenge, especially in a tight series like this one:

“It’s the ultimate effort, endeavor, whatever you want to call it,” Carlisle said.

“It’s long, it’s arduous, but it’s the greatest opportunity going. And it’s really hard, and it’s supposed to be hard.

“This is where we’re gonna have to dig in and circle the wagons and come back stronger on Monday (in Game 5). This was a big disappointment, but there’s three games left.”

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For more news and notes on the Indiana Pacers, visit Indiana Pacers on SI.