Pacers' Rick Carlisle Makes Eye Opening Comments on Officials Ahead of NBA Finals Game 5

Pacers' Rick Carlisle Makes Eye Opening Comments on Officials Ahead of NBA Finals Game 5 originally appeared on Athlon Sports.

The Indiana Pacers and Oklahoma City Thunder found themselves deadlocked at two wins apiece heading into Monday night's 8:30 p.m. tip-off at the Paycom Center in OKC. 

The Pacers have lost Game 4 after they were outscored 31-17 in the fourth quarter by their new rivals in the Western Conference, a challenging outcome that had fans questioning officials both during and after the game.

On Sunday, comments surfaced of Pacers coach Rick Carlisle sharing his unfiltered thoughts on officials heading into Monday night's game.

Carlisle, who has served as a head coach for 23 NBA seasons, had a strong message for those watching as he shared his thoughts. 

"I think it's awful...Some of the things I've seen about the officiating," Carlisle said. 

"Scott Foster in particular. I've known Scott Foster for 30 years, he's a great official, he's done a great job in these playoffs, we've had him a lot of times," he added during Media Day Availability on Sunday. 

"And, the ridiculous scrutiny that's being thrown out there is terrible, and unfair, and unjust, and stupid." 

The Pacers received 33 free throws compared to 38 for the Thunder during Game 4 and made 25 of them, good for a 75.8 percentage. 

Indiana managed to knock down 11 three-pointers during the game, eight more than the Thunder, but Oklahoma's efficiency inside the three-point arc ultimately proved too much for the Pacers as they lost in front of an understandably upset and frustrated home town crowd. 

Related: Tyrese Haliburton Sends Message Ahead of Game 5 of Thunder-Pacers NBA Finals

This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 15, 2025, where it first appeared.