INDIANAPOLIS -- Longtime Indiana Pacers executive Donnie Walsh, the architect of the franchise's turnaround, announced his retirement on Wednesday.
"Over my 30-year relationship with Donnie, I have been amazed to watch him help lead this organization to what it has become," team owner Herb Simon said in a statement. "He was certainly the right leader at the right time, and the invaluable wisdom and counsel he has provided over the decades extend well beyond the lines of the basketball court."
Walsh came to Indiana as an assistant coach in 1984, joining a franchise that had never won a playoff game during its NBA history.