Ex-Pacers president Walsh announces retirement

Former Indiana Pacers president of basketball operations Donnie Walsh has announced his retirement, he told Matthew VanTryon of the Indianapolis Star on Wednesday.

The 79-year-old has served as a consultant for the Pacers since 2013.

"I'm getting older and don't have the energy," Walsh said. "It's a young man's sport. This job has always occupied a great deal of my time. The Pacers were always in my head. This gives me an opportunity to pay attention to my children, my grandchildren, and my wife (Judy) of 58 years."

Walsh joined the Pacers as an assistant coach in 1984. He became the team's general manager just two years later, notably selecting franchise icon Reggie Miller during the first round in 1987.

Walsh eventually rose to the top of Indiana's front office and was instrumental in developing the club into a perennial playoff contender.

He left the Pacers in April 2008 to run the New York Knicks' basketball operations, but Walsh returned to Indiana in 2012 after a three-year spell in the Big Apple.

"Over my 30-year relationship with Donnie, I have been amazed to watch him help lead this organization to what it has become," Pacers 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.

"For that, I owe him an incredible debt of gratitude. While he may be stepping away, Donnie will always be part of the Pacers family and I am personally excited for him as he transitions to his next chapter."