Pacers coach Rick Carlisle: 'I can't think of anyone more respected' than David Benner
SAN ANTONIO, Texas -- Rick Carlisle got to know David Benner in 1997 when he first joined the Pacers as an assistant on Larry Bird's staff. One of the first things he remembered noticing about Benner was his relationship with Reggie Miller.
"The greatest recollections I have were he and Reggie Miller's pre-game ritual of Reggie yelling at him and ripping at him and all that kind of stuff," Carlisle said. "It became an institution, what those guys did."
Benner was, of course, an institution to himself, so Wednesday was a heartbreaking day for the Pacers' organization when he died of cancer at the age of 67. Benner was the Pacers' director of public relations from 1994 until his retirement in 2022. He was there through Carlisle's first tenure as head coach from 2004-07 and then again when he was hired back in 2021.
"I can't think of anyone more respected or well thought of than David Benner," Carlisle said Wednesday after the Pacers practiced at Trinity University in San Antonio for Thursday's game against the Spurs. "It's a great loss. It's an emotional time. We will miss him really. ... He was with us through a lot of great times and some of the more challenging times. Whatever the situation, he was consistent and on-point with how he did his job, how he supported you and how he supported the organization."
The Pacers players remembered him warmly as well. Center Myles Turner remembered that he was one of the first people in the organization to invite him out to dinner when he arrived in Indianapolis as a 19-year-old rookie in 2015, and that he always encouraged players to be themselves even while protecting the Pacers' brand.
"Benner was someone who let you go out there and rock out," Turner said. "There was never a bad day with Benner. That's what I would say. He always came in with a smile on his face. He always changed the vibe a little bit. If you were having a rough day, you'd just look at him and smile."
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: David Benner: Rick Carlisle remembers his contributions to Pacers
