Pacers and Coach Frank Vogel Agree to Contract Extension

Indiana Pacers head coach Frank Vogel will be roaming the sidelines at Bankers Life Fieldhouse for the foreseeable future after the team extended his contract on Monday afternoon, according to Marc Spears of Yahoo! Sports:

"

Pacers have signed head coach Frank Vogel to a contract extension. No terms were revealed.

— Marc J. Spears (@SpearsNBAYahoo) January 7, 2013"

The extension was well deserved, as Vogel has overseen the resurgence of this once proud franchise that had fallen on hard times.

Vogel led the Pacers to a 42-24 record and the No. 3 seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs during the lockout-shortened 2011-12 NBA season, advancing to the semifinals before falling to the eventual NBA champions, the Miami Heat.

Under his guidance, the Pacers sit in first place in the Central Division with a 20-14 record, a half-game ahead of the Chicago Bulls.

That Vogel has been able to lead his team to the top of its division is a testament to his abilities as a head coach. This is because the Pacers have been without All-Star swingman Danny Granger, who has yet to play this season due to a knee injury—one that is expected to keep him out of action until February at the earliest (h/t ESPN).

Vogel originally joined the franchise as an assistant coach under Jim O’Brien in 2007, and held that post until O’Brien was relieved of his duties toward the end of the 2010-11 season.

As the Pacers interim head coach, Vogel inherited a team with a 17-27 record and turned things around almost instantly. Indiana would go 20-18 over its last 38 games and sneak into the playoffs, where the Pacers fell to the Chicago Bulls in five games.

Over 138 career games on the bench for Indiana, Vogel has posted a 82-56 regular-season record and a 7-9 mark in 16 postseason games.