Bjorkgren named Pacers coach
He previously served as Raptors assistant, Santa Cruz Warriors coach
The Indiana Pacers hired former Santa Cruz Warriors coach Nate Bjorkgren as their new head coach Tuesday.
Bjorkgren’s hiring ended a twomonth search that began when the Pacers fired Nate McMillan on Aug. 26, just weeks after giving McMillan a contract extension. Terms of the deal were not immediately available.
“I am honored to take on the role as head coach of the Indiana Pacers,” said Bjorkgren in a release on nba.com/pacers. “This is something I have prepared for during my career. I want to thank Kevin, Chad (Buchanan), Kelly ( Krauskopf), Larry Bird, Donnie Walsh, and Herb and Steve Simon for this opportunity. I also want to thank Nick Nurse for giving me my first professional coaching job 14 years ago.
“I’m looking forward to working with this great team to achieve our goal as NBA Champions.”
The Pacers went 45-28 this season, posting the fourth best record in the Eastern Conference.
“We are very pleased and excited to have Nate as our new coach,” said Kevin Pritchard, the Pacers’ president of basketball operations, said in a release. “This was an extensive and thorough search, and when we reached the conclusion, we felt strongly Nate is the right coach for us at the right time. He comes from a winning background, has experienced championship success, is innovative and his communication skills along with his positivity are tremendous. We all look forward to a long, successful partner
ship in helping the Pacers move forward.”
Bjorkgren joins the Pacers after spending the last two seasons on Nick Nurse’s
staff in Toronto, where he helped the Raptors capture their first NBA championship in 2018-19. Bjorkgren was an assistant with the
Phoenix Suns from 2015-17 and spent four seasons as a G-League head coach.
He coached the G - League’s Dakota Wizards in 2011-12. The franchise relocated to California following that season and became the Santa Cruz Warriors. He coached the Warriors for one season, leading them to the D League Finals after going 32-18 in the regular season.
Bjorkgren is a native of Storm Lake, Iowa. He played basketball collegiately at the University of South Dakota and Buena Vista University in Iowa.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.