For the 2003–04 season, Carlisle returned to the Pacers as head coach (Isiah Thomas had been fired, almost immediately after Larry Bird was brought back as the new President of Basketball Operations). In his first season, Carlisle led the Pacers to the Central Division title and NBA's best regular-season record at 61–21 (74.4%), setting a franchise record for wins (both in the NBA and ABA). In the playoffs, the team eliminated both the Boston Celtics and Miami Heat, before losing to the Detroit Pistons in the Eastern Conference Finals. That year, he coached the East All-Stars at the All-Star Game. In 2005, the Pacers roster was decimated by injuries (most notably, those of Jermaine O'Neal, Stephen Jackson and Jamaal Tinsley) and suspensions that were meted out after the Pacers–Pistons brawl at The Palace of Auburn Hills, which resulted in Ron Artest being suspended for the rest of the season, Jackson being suspended for 30 games and O'Neal being suspended for 15 games. However, Carlisle was still able to rally the Pacers to the NBA Playoffs that season. As the sixth seed, they again defeated the Boston Celtics in the first round, before being defeated once again by the eventual Eastern Conference champion, the Detroit Pistons.