Pascal Siakam brought some Halloween theater to the Indiana Pacers’ locker room, and he picked one of Rick Carlisle’s most memorable moments to pull it off.
During a recent press conference, Siakam showed up dressed as his head coach and recreated the famous April 2015 scene in which Carlisle taped up his mouth after being asked about officiating during a playoff game. The post, shared on X by SleeperPacers, showed Siakam leaning into the bit all the way, right down to the taped mouth and the bald cap.
“Are you asking me a question about the officiating?” Siakam said. “I brought this just for that.”
He didn’t stop there. Siakam copied Carlisle’s look and suit, and even worked to match the expression from the original press conference.
The moment Siakam was parodying came in April 2015, when Carlisle was coaching the Dallas Mavericks. Dallas was trying to avoid a series sweep and beat the Houston Rockets in Game 4.
Carlisle had already taken issue with the refereeing after Game 3, especially calls involving Dwight Howard, and that led to a $25,000 fine. When the officiating came up again after Game 4, he came prepared and used the tape to cover his mouth, which helped him avoid another fine.
On the court, the Pacers have had a mixed start to the 2026-27 NBA season at 2-2, but Siakam has been rolling. He’s averaging 23.5 points, 7.8 rebounds and four assists per game, and his production has stayed at an All-Star level.
Pascal Siakam dressed up as Rick Carlisle for Halloween 🤣🎃 pic.twitter.com/sWrhZZxG05
— SleeperPacers (@SleeperPacers) October 28, 2026
Carlisle now leads Indiana, which is trying to get back into playoff consideration after last season’s struggles without the injured Tyrese Haliburton.
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