Indianapolis, IN (My Sportsbook) - The Indiana Pacers Wednesday named Rick Carlisle as their new head coach. Carlisle replaces Isiah Thomas, who was fired last week.

"I'm very happy to have Rick on board as coach of the Indiana Pacers," said President of Basketball Operations Larry Bird. "I know our fans are familiar with him and I look forward to a great year. I've had great respect for Rick, both as a player and as a coach. He has tremendous knowledge of the game and I firmly believe he is the right coach for this team."

The 43-year-old Carlisle served as a Pacers' assistant when Bird was head coach of Indiana from 1997-2000.

After spending three seasons with the Pacers, Carlisle took off a year from coaching. He then received his first NBA head coaching position with the Pistons in 2001. In two campaigns with Detroit, Carlisle compiled a 100-64 record after guiding the club to consecutive 50-win seasons.

In 2002, he was named the NBA's Coach of the Year as the Pistons had an 18- game improvement from the previous season.

"I'm obviously thrilled to be back in Indiana with an opportunity to work for the Pacers," said Carlisle. "I said when I left, this was one of the best jobs in professional sports and my opinion hasn't changed. I've always had great respect for and enjoyed working with (President) Donnie Walsh and Larry Bird. I look forward to having that opportunity again."