The Indiana Pacers are about to complete their 50th season as a franchise and they’ve had 15 head coaches during their existence. Which of these men accomplished the most while leading the Pacers?
The Indiana Pacers have a long and storied history, going back to the team’s inaugural season in 1967-68. The Pacers have made the playoffs in 32 of their 49 completed seasons and hang three ABA championship banners in the rafters at Bankers Life Fieldhouse.
Like every franchise, Indiana has had their down periods over the years, but there has been plenty of success as well. The Pacers won ABA titles in 1970, ’72 and ’73 and made the NBA Finals in 2000.
Fifteen head coaches have roamed the sideline for the Pacers, with varying degrees of success. It is difficult to evaluate a coach’s performance as much of it is subjective, and also depends largely on the quality of the roster a coach has to work with.
NO Coach ever won a game by what he knows...
— Sharman White (@coachswhite) March 27, 2017
It is what his players have LEARNED that wins... #GoodTeachingLeadsToGoodLearning#FinalFour
For the purpose of this analysis, we are going to rank the top five head coaches in Indiana Pacers history by a combination of their win-loss record (both in the regular season and playoffs), length of tenure and, of course, conference titles and league championships.
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Only one of the five coaches who made our list goes back to the ABA days and some might question the validity of his inclusion since the ABA was a competing league to the NBA prior to their merger in 1976.
Based on head-to-head team matchups (the ABA won that battle 79-76) and the large number of former ABA players who became NBA All-Stars after the merger, it is reasonable to conclude that winning as an ABA head coach was comparable in difficulty to the same task in the NBA.
Let’s take a look at the five coaches who accomplished the most during their time in Indiana with the Pacers.