At 25-55 with two games left, the Indiana Pacers are on track for their worst season since the 1980s. As the season winds down to a close, there is uncertainty regarding Rick Carlisle. Rumor has it that he is moving on from his head coaching position to a front-office role.

However, the Pacers head coach quickly shut down that rumor and clarified that he came to Indiana to coach.

Pacers Vice President of Basketball Communications Michael Preston tweeted the news Thursday afternoon.

https://twitter.com/preston76/status/1512116680742350858?s=20&t=HhoQ1L-VKiG9bVsWwMg2uA

Carlisle wanted to put the rumor to bed “once and for all” to avoid any further controversial, false reports on his career in Indiana. According to another tweet from Preston, Carlisle plans on coaching the Pacers “for the long-haul.”

https://twitter.com/preston76/status/1512118135658319877?s=20&t=HhoQ1L-VKiG9bVsWwMg2uA

He also said that he isn't afraid of working with the team through a rebuild.

This clarification was especially important for the Pacers. With such a disappointing season, the last thing this team needs is false reports and speculation about their leadership.

This is Carlisle's third stint as a Pacers coach. He served as Larry Bird's assistant coach from 1997 to 2000, before making his way to his first NBA head coaching gig with the Detroit Pistons. He spent three seasons there before returning to Indiana as their head coach from 2003 to 2007. The majority of Carlisle's head coaching career was spent with the Dallas Mavericks from 2008 to 2021, and he returned to the Pacers ahead of the 2021-2022 season.