Pacers’ Carlisle steps down as executive VP

INDIANAPOLIS – Rick Carlisle told the Indiana Pacers he will not return as the team’s executive vice president.

Carlisle was fired in April after four tumultuous years as Indiana’s coach. The team offered him the option of returning as vice president, a title he was given as part of a new multiyear deal before this season.

Carlisle told The Associated Press on Monday night that working in television, coaching or taking time off are all immediate possibilities for him. He has worked with ESPN and ABC during the playoffs and said he will continue through the rest of the NBA finals.

The day he was fired, Carlisle said he enjoyed coaching the team but understood it was time for the Pacers to hear a “new voice.”