“We are going after them!” Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle gives stern WARNING to Celtics after losing game 3 of ECF

Indiana Pacers have a tough task ahead after trailing 0-3 to the Boston Celtics.

“We are going after them!” Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle gives stern WARNING to Celtics after losing game 3 of ECF

Indiana Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle warns they will go after the Boston Celtics in the remaining games of the Eastern Conference Finals

To lose a crucial Eastern Conference Finals Game 3 after leading for much of the game is a tough pill to swallow. Despite not having their leading superstar, the young Indiana Pacers put up a great fight against the league-leading Boston Celtics. Only for everything to come crashing down in the 4th quarter as they lost the game by three points. The emotions were high for head coach Rick Carlisle who ended up letting the media know how he felt.

In the post-game press conference, Carlisle was heated, fuming with loss despite clearly having a team capable of winning. He then gave out a warning to close the press conference.

And believe me when I tell you we are going after them.
Rick Carlisle said

Suggesting that he will not take the defeat lightly and prepare his team to win the next four games. They would need to do that to wrestle back the series and clinch an NBA Finals berth.

FS Video

However, it is not an easy task. No team in the history of the NBA has ever managed to come back down 0-3. But that should not deter them from at least trying. The Indiana Pacers have been trying in all of the 3 games in this series. Yet towards the end, the league leaders and NBA title favorites have found a way to win.

Rick Carlisle will have to push the right buttons so that his team can continue with their 1st half pace and offensive efficiency until the end of the game. Until Game 4 resumes he at least does not want to be reminded how bad they were at the end on Saturday.

Rick Carlisle does not want to be reminded of 4th quarter

Prior to the press conference ending warning he let out, Rick Carlisle had another bout of emotional outburst. After he gave his opening analogy of how the game transpired, a reporter started to talk about the last two minutes of the game. Carlisle stopped him immediately and shot back.

I just watched ending so you don't need to remind me. I saw everything that happened. Everything.
Rick Carlisle said

This was probably the way for Carlisle to stop the reporter from talking about the obvious mistakes both he and his players committed. Naturally, nobody wants to hear about their mistakes.

Carlisle and his coaching staff could have changed schemes in the last two minutes when they were up by 8. Had they adjusted accordingly, there could have been a chance of holding on to win. Instead, the team lacked the leadership necessary and was found playing catch up to the Boston Celtics.

These issues cannot be repeated in the upcoming game(s) if the Indiana Pacers want to keep the Eastern Conference Finals alive. Else they could be looking forward to next year.

In case you missed: