The job title changed for Nate McMillan on May 16th when Pacers President Larry Bird officially announced that McMillan would be the 15th head coach in franchise history.
McMillan has a wealth of experience leading a team, a head coach for 930 (478-452) games over nearly 12 seasons for two different teams, and the 52-year-old brings an old-school approach.
[VIDEO: McMillan on coaching additions, Niang, and goals for current Pacers]
He joined the Pacers’ bench as Frank Vogel’s top assistant in 2013. He said at his opening press conference that he’s learned a lot since then.
“I think my approach will be a little different than it was back in 2005. It seems like when I started with the Blazers was so long ago but things have changed. The players have changed. How you coached these plays has changed and I think the biggest thing is being able to adapt.
“There is a lot of old-school in me and I won’t lose all of that. But I do understand that you do have to adapt to this generation of players. They call them the ‘millenniums’ as far as you communicate with them, prepare them, and that’s something that we started talking about when I was with USA Basketball, Coach K and his staff.”
[Bill Bayno ‘couldn’t have written a better story’ to be reunited with McMillan, Pritchard in Indy]
Prior to his first training camp as the Pacers head coach, I had a chance to talk with coach McMillan at the Pacers annual golf outing. Listen to that conversation — on the majority of the players working out in town since August, the team’s health, and his coaching staff — below: