Former Boston Celtics champion shooting guard Rick Carlisle has informed the Dallas Mavericks he will not be returning to his position of head coach of that team next season per ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, immediately sparking speculation he may have interest in one of several other such positions that have opened up across the league.
One of those teams is of course the franchise he famously won a title with in 1986, the Celtics having recently moved longtime head coach Brad Stevens to the front office on the retirement of Carlisle’s former teammate Danny Ainge as team President earlier this month.
Despite reporting that hiring a Black coach is a priority for the team, it would be hard to imagine Boston passing on an opportunity to interview with the renowned coach should Carlisle have interest in the position.
Rick Carlisle suddenly becomes a prominent candidate in a head coaching marketplace that includes six current openings — and maybe more to come. https://t.co/sYJTHVchte
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) June 17, 2021
It is not clear, however, that the former Celtic wishes to coach next season, with Carlisle having been coaching almost without a break since retiring as a player in 1989.
The New York native previously worked as an assistant with the (then) New Jersey (now, Brooklyn) Nets, Portland Trail Blazers and Indiana Pacers before stints with the Detroit Pistons, Pacers and most recently Dallas as head coach, where he won a title in just his third year with the organization in 2011.
This post originally appeared on Celtics Wire. Follow us on Facebook!
