Official: Mavs hire Rick Carlisle as head coach

[Tacker]

New York, NY (Sports Network) - Rick Carlisle is heading back to the NBA as a head coach.

Analyst Peter Vecsey, speaking on NBA TV, reported Carlisle would take over for the recently fired Avery Johnson.

In six seasons as a coach, two with Detroit and four with Indiana, Carlisle has compiled a 281-211 record. He was the league's coach of the year in 2002 when he guided the Pistons to a 50-win season.

Carlisle's career playoff record stands at 30-32. Indiana finished just 35-47 in 2006-07, and Carlisle didn't return to the team for the following season. In four seasons as the Pacers mentor, Carlisle compiled a 181-147 record and the team made the NBA playoffs in three of his four seasons at the helm.

His best season in Indianapolis was his first. In 2003-04 the Pacers posted a 61-21 record -- the best mark in franchise history -- and reached the Eastern Conference finals.

Despite having three years left on a five-year deal he signed after Dallas' run to the 2006 NBA Finals, Johnson finds himself unemployed after two straight exits in the first round of the playoffs. Johnson led the Mavs to a 194-70 record during the regular season, but his postseason mark is 23-24. The Mavericks have lost 12 of their last 15 playoff games.

Dallas lost to New Orleans, 99-94, on Tuesday night, as the Hornets wrapped up a five-game victory over the Mavs in the Western Conference quarterfinals. The first-round defeat was the second straight for Dallas, which was eliminated by Golden State in the 2007 conference quarterfinals in one of the biggest upsets in NBA playoff history.

[Tacker]

hmm no one cares about the mavs anymore I guess. Can I say bandwagoners?

[TDMVPDPOY]

if he goes to dallas,

i wonder if they try and trade howards for artest? or jermaine oneal...fukn mavs will be back

[SpursFanFirst]

I can't believe Cuban thought Carlisle would be better than Avery.
His w-l record in the regular season/playoffs suck and he has no backbone.

He's always seemed like a good guy, but I don't think I would've hired him.
Isn't Larry Brown wanting to come back to coach?

Are Mavs fans excited about this?

[Shank]

How the hell do you hire someone without even interviewing them first?

[mFFL03]

wow...I think it's OFFICIAL he got a 2nd interview (right now on espn.com) not that he got the job.....jumping the gun there kid?

[Shank]

It's Vescey. It's to be expected.

[Aggie Hoopsfan]

:lol Please make this happen Cuban. AJ > Carlisle.

[Mr.Bottomtooth]

hmm no one cares about the mavs anymore I guess. Can I say bandwagoners?

:wtf

[PistonsDynasty]

Rick Carlisle is a terrible coach. If Cuban didn't like AJ, he needs to check Carlisle's resume. He didn't get fired from the pistons for nothing. Almost everyone on the pistons during that time hated carlisle. I'm sure the pacers didn't like him at all either. He'll get 2 years with the mavs. After that, he'll probably have improved on his broadcasting skills

[Findog]

AJ > Carlisle.


Yeah, sure.

[Findog]

hmm no one cares about the mavs anymore I guess. Can I say bandwagoners?

9 am on Saturday morning forum.

[Red Hawk #21]

Anybody who thinks AJ>Carlislie is fuckin drunk, I'll give you the benefit of the doubt that maybe your still sleepy though.

[spurs_fan_in_exile]

I hope it's true just because I think he would have been a better fit in Phoenix. He's not going to bring much of anything that AJ didn't, except more experience in the league. It'll probably amount to an improvement, but not a big one.

[Findog]

I hope it's true just because I think he would have been a better fit in Phoenix. He's not going to bring much of anything that AJ didn't, except more experience in the league. It'll probably amount to an improvement, but not a big one.

The Mavs need more improvement in personnel, so I wouldn't expect Carlisle to turn shit into gold. I just think that he probably has more common sense than Avery, as in, let's try to run more and not have Kidd just stand around as a spot-up shooter on the weakside when the Mavs have the ball, or bench him for the final play against San Antonio since that's exactly what you got him for.

He has that rep as a taskmaster, but the fact of the matter is that most head coaches will do their best work in their first two years on the job. That won't come into play until a couple of years down the line, just as it was with Avery. I don't think Carlisle has the "my shit doesn't stink and I know everything there is to know about basketball" attitude that Avery does. I also don't think Carlisle would've gotten worked over so bad against Riley and Nellie the way Avery did.

[sribb43]

first vecsey reports that Derrick Coleman has a heart transplant then he writes the mavs have hired Carlisle...how many fuck ups can a guy have within 24 hours? how does he still hvae a job?

[StylisticS]

hmm no one cares about the mavs anymore I guess. Can I say bandwagoners?

Forgive most of us that aren't up at 7:00 in the fuckin morning on Saturday. :rolleyes

[mavsfan1000]

Anyone know if Carlisle is a high IQ coach? Allows young players to make mistakes (not favoring vets), lets the team run, and etc.

[Tacker]

Coaches are so overrated, you think Byron Scott and Doc Rivers would be good without their star players?

[Shank]

Mike Fisher confirming it now. He gets his news directly from Cuban.

[Aggie Hoopsfan]

Carlisle's better with the x's and o's, but he's about as much of a players' coach as AJ is.

[Findog]

Carlisle's better with the x's and o's, but he's about as much of a players' coach as AJ is.

Then that's an improvement, because he won't lose the locker room until two years from now. Dirk will be at the end of his prime then, so whats the problem?

[boutons_]

Now the big variable is Mavs' roster changes.

Rick did very well in Detroit and Indiana until Artest happened, but he had strong personnel. Not sure what he'll have in Dallas.

[PacerFan]

It is tough to be a "players coach" with idiots like O'Neal, Jackson, and Tinsley on the team. Carslile is a very good x's and o's type coach. He is also very defensively motivated. He laid the groundwork for a championship in Detroit as well as had pretty good success in Indiana. Since he has left the Pacers have got a lot worse real fast. Overall I think he is a pretty darn good coach.

[mFFL03]

Come Back Del Harris!!!!

[duncan228]

http://spurstalk.com/forums/showthread.php?t=93966

[JamStone]

Anyone know if Carlisle is a high IQ coach? Allows young players to make mistakes (not favoring vets), lets the team run, and etc.

This if from a Pistons fan perspective based on stuff I've read and heard. Obviously, I don't have inside information so it's based on Pistons beat writers and other hear-say sources.

Anyway, Rick Carlisle supposedly has a very good basketball mind. I believe he was the offensive coach under Larry Bird for the Reggie-Rik Smits Pacers, but when he was hired by the Pistons, he became more noted as a defensive minded coach. Either way, he supposedly is extremely well prepared and is meticulous in all aspects, right down to using mathematical percentages in his decision making.

Now, that meticulous preparation also bled into his coaching style, as with the Pistons, he would often script the first 10 or so plays of a game for the offense. It wasn't take what the defense gives you. He had set plays for about the first 10 plays, maybe more. Run the scripted plays no matter what.

As far as his failures with the Pistons organization, there are several stories. First and foremost, he pissed off the owner, Bill Davidson. Basically, reports from people who worked with the Pistons and at the Palace said he was pretty much a dick to everyone. And, Bill Davidson just didn't like the guy. That also transferred to his relationships with his players. He lost players because he was an unrelenting and stubborn task master. He grated on players because there was generally no leniency in his ways. And, that led to many of his players tuning him out.

He did prefer veterans, and his stubbornness was most clearly demonstrated when he started and played Michael Curry heavy minutes throughout the 2002-03 season and rarely gave Tayshaun Prince any minutes even though reports were that Prince would kill Curry in practice. It took a firm push by Joe Dumars in the first round of the 2003 playoffs against the Orlando Magic to get Carlisle to play Prince. Prince performed extremely well in that series and the next series against the Sixers, and I believe he's started every game both regular season and playoffs for the Pistons since. Carlisle did favor veterans. And, he favored guys that did everything his way.

Now, I can't speak for his time with the Pacers, but I actually believe he has had to improve on his people skills and his approach to coaching. His experiences with Ron Artest, Stephen Jackson, and Jamaal Tinsley has had to give him better perspective on coaching. He has had very good success with his teams in both Detroit and Indiana. His micro-managing helped make them high playoff seed teams. So, you know he's got to be doing something right, at least with the X's and O's and in game coaching.

I would guess that he's probably a little more mellow, will probably micro manage a little less, and will approach coaching a little differently, especially with an owner like Mark Cuban. I always found Rick a pretty witty and funny guy with that dry type of humor. He was good in interviews with the media. And, he always presented himself well. So, in many ways, I was surprised to hear the things about him when he was fired. It will be interesting to see how his relationships with his players and Cuban develop.

And, then there's always the fact that he looks exactly like Jim Carey.

[Findog]

I think it's a good hire, the best of what was available. Jackzen, Pop and Jerry Sloan are not available.

Besides, Pop and Sloan are not exactly the cuddly types, so what's the problem?

[ducks]

if rick has set plays that can not bold well with jason kidd

[Findog]

if rick has set plays that can not bold well with jason kidd

Okay, then.

[ducks]

from jamstone post rick seems more controlling then aj and more of a guy that does not get along with people

[Findog]

from jamstone post rick seems more controlling then aj and more of a guy that does not get along with people

Thanks, Emmitt.

[ducks]

you are welcome

[Indazone]

JVG the Second. Welcome to grind it out defensive basketball.

[Indazone]

Here's betting that Carlisle will try to turn Dirk into a back to the basket post up center.

[ducks]

be instersting to see if dirk is back shooting those 3 pointers now aj is gone

[ChumpDumper]

How the hell do you hire someone without even interviewing them first?What makes you think Cuban hasn't been planning this all along?

[ShoogarBear]

Carlisle is already generating stats to show that Erick Dampier is Defensive Player of the Year.

[Allanon]

Del Harris > Rick Carlisle as far as player management.

It won't be long before the players tune Rick out too.

[StylisticS]

With all this talk about Dallas hiring an AJ clone and how much it's such a bad higher, who should Dallas have hired? All the top coaches out there either are already employed, not interested, or had problems at their other jobs. So who out there was better?

[manufor3]

Forgive most of us that aren't up at 7:00 in the fuckin morning on Saturday. :rolleyes

:wakeup:wakeup:wakeup

[JamStone]

from jamstone post rick seems more controlling then aj and more of a guy that does not get along with people

He was with the Pistons. Doesn't mean he can adapt and adjust, especially since his style has proven to grate on players. I think he'll also be willing to relent a little considering Jason Kidd's skill set. Everything I wrote was based on his two seasons with the Pistons 5-6 years ago.

[mavsfan1000]

Sounds like Rick Carlisle is a better version of AJ. The stubborness might hurt us if Antoine Wright isn't given his opportunities. Overall I like it though he is not the perfect coach. Playing a traditional center should help.

[nsrammstein]

I would have preferred if the Mavs signed Hubie Brown isn't he like 92?

[traitoravery]

:lol This is great they go from the Spurs kryptonite to back to the Spurs red headed stepchild in 4 months.... I used to hate Cuban and now I am starting to like him.

[jack sommerset]

I don't understand why teams feel it neccesary to fill the coaching vacancy so fast.

[SouthernFried]

Carlisle has a chance if he can fire Cuban.

[Armando]

Carlise will just be the next coach that Kidd gets fired.

Byron Scott

Avery Johnson

[sribb43]

You're a dumbass Mariotti. Rick will lead the Mavericks back to the NBA Finals. And lose.

Woody Paige.....:lol

[Shank]

What makes you think Cuban hasn't been planning this all along?

Good point. He probably knew he had it in the bag. That's why he fired Avery over the phone and went to hang out at a Cubs game.

[monosylab1k]

meh. at first it sounded good, but the more I research Carlisle, the less I like this.

I'm gonna start leading the FIRE CARLISLE! charge right now.

[Mr.Bottomtooth]

:lol

[dav4463]

He is someone that mark cuban can push around. He's another Wade Phillips. cuban thinks he is Jerry Jones anyway.

[Indazone]

Cuban is an idiot. There are better coaches available out there. Tom Thibodeaux is a better coach than Carlisle and the dude is a player's coach.