“Unbelievably Braindead” Fans Lose it Over Rick Carlisle Not Playing Pascal Siakam Enough in Game 7

Rick Carlisle had done an unbelievable job coaching Pascal Siakam and the Indiana Pacers throughout the 2025 postseason.

“Unbelievably Braindead” Fans Lose it Over Rick Carlisle Not Playing Pascal Siakam Enough in Game 7

Rick Carlisle did not play Pascal Siakam for stretches in Game 7 (Image via FirstSportz)

In Game 6, the Indiana Pacers embarrassed the Oklahoma City Thunder with a perfect team performance. Pascal Siakam and Tyrese Haliburton may be their de facto leaders, but Rick Carlisle has built a team that thrives off each other.

Heading into Game 7, they had the momentum, the motivation to prove everyone wrong, and the game plan to finish the job and lift their 1st ever NBA title. That plan went moot early in the 1st quarter after Tyrese Haliburton tore his Achilles and had to be helped off the court.

Despite that devastating loss, the Pacers, buoyed by the desire to win for their fallen star, kept pace with the Thunder and were in the lead at the half. Coming out in the 3rd quarter, that changed as the home team blitzed their opponents.

However, midway through that quarter, TJ McConnell continued his playoff exploits and scored 10 straight points to bring the deficit down to 4 points. The Thunder responded late, but then the undrafted point guard started to draw defenders, and the Pacers’ offense stuttered.

All this while, Pascal Siakam was sitting on the bench. After a disastrous eight and a half minutes of no-scoring performance from anyone other than TJ McConnell, the damage was done. Head Coach Rick Carlisle preferred to keep defensive-minded players on the floor to contain the Thunder rather than help their need for scoring.

By the time Siakam came back in, it was too late as the West champions held a 21-point lead. Had Carlisle mixed his rotation earlier, maybe the game would not have gotten out of hand. The Oklahoma City Thunder went on to win the NBA title with a 103-91 score.

Fans tear into Rick Carlisle for not utilizing Pascal Siakam more

Basketball fans watching Game 7 of the 2025 NBA Finals saw how the Indiana Pacers came close to tying the game. A while later, they again saw the Oklahoma City Thunder stretch their lead to 21 points. Fans believe this had everything to do with Rick Carlisle‘s rotations.

Rick Carlisle otherwise had a stellar 2025 postseason
Rick Carlisle otherwise had a stellar 2025 postseason (Image via Pikkit/X)

That ended up costing them what could be the only chance of battling for an NBA title. With the way the Eastern Conference is, it will be a difficult task to repeat what they achieved this season. Fans took shots at Carlisle for throwing the game away. Examples of those comments are below.

When TJ McConnell was tearing it up, none of his teammates on the floor were helping. That should have been enough for Rick Carlisle to send Pascal Siakam on and help push the home team over the edge. Instead, they believe the oldest head coach in the league may have banked upon his players’ ability to come back and win games.

Pascal Siakam was pushing the team to battle through after Tyrese Haliburton’s injury

After Tyrese Haliburton went down in the 1st quarter, every Indiana Pacers star looked distraught. Up until that point, their leading superstar had led the team in offense, and losing him was the biggest loss possible.

After that, Pascal Siakam stepped in to rile his team up. He was pictured talking to his teammates, reminding them of what they are out to accomplish. He stood up as the leader he had set out to be after the Pacers traded for him last season.

After all that, not to have him playing more than 40 minutes in the biggest game of the Pacers’ season, Rick Carlisle may have misread the game. This loss is going to be as much about his rotational mistakes in game 7 as it is about Haliburton’s injury.

Also Read: