BLOOMINGTON — From the moment Indiana basketball guard Kanaan Carlyle picked up a basketball, his father preached the importance of being a two-way player.
His dad was a talented quarterback at South Carolina State and strictly a “dunker” on the basketball court, but that didn’t stop him from making sure Kanaan was a well-rounded talent.
“He gave me that mindset — ain’t none of that soft stuff,” Carlyle said, at IU’s basketball media day in September. “You got to be a dawg on the court, don’t let no one bully you, don’t let anyone score on you without letting them have it.”
The philosophy made Carlyle a highly ranked recruit during his preps career and top ranked player in the transfer portal this past spring. He’s fully embraced the mindset in Bloomington as well as he looks to establish himself as the team’s defensive stopper.
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Indiana basketball Kanaan Carlyle is talent that’s worth smiling over
Carlyle landed at Indiana after what he described as a “hectic” recruitment process in the portal that involved about 10 to 12 schools.
“I gave every school a fair shot,” Carlyle said. “I just wanted to go somewhere that was going to help me accomplish my dreams and truly push me to be the best man I can be and player I could be.”
He first needed to get past being a little intimidated by coach Mike Woodson before officially committing to the school.
“Man, at first of scary, he don’t smile at first,” Carlyle said, with a laugh. “He give you a little frown at first. I love coach Woodson, each and every day he pushes me. He ain’t never going to let me slack off. I respect him at the end of the day.”
Carlyle was happy to share that he did eventually get Woodson to crack a smile.
“I smiled at him first,” Carlyle said. “He gave in to it.”
And why wouldn’t he? Carlyle was another big get for Indiana’s coaching staff that needed to retool a roster that lost six scholarship players from last year’s roster.
He was part of Stanford’s 2023 signing class coming out of high school.
According to 247 Sports composite rankings, he was the No. 52-ranked recruit in the country. The consensus four-star prospect had nine scholarship offers, including ones from Alabama, Auburn, Kansas, Tennessee and Florida.
Carlyle was an All-Pac-12 Freshman Team honorable mention last year while averaging 11.5 points and 2.7 assists per game. He also averaged 1.4 made 3-pointers (32%) a game.
He was the No. 15 player in the 247 Sports transfer rankings.
“He wants to get better each and every day,” Myles Rice said, at Big Ten Media Days. “His scoring, his attention to detail and his love for the game, him just wanting to get better are the things he hangs his hat on. I love to be around somebody like that.”
Rice and Carlyle played against each other three times last season — Washington State went 3-0 against Stanford and gave Rice bragging rights — but their friendship predates high school.
They’ve been working together since arriving in Bloomington, and try to put up at least 500 shots each day.
“He can fill it up with the best of them,” Rice said. “I’ve seen it since I was younger, I’ve seen at Stanford last year and now at Indiana. It’s crazy.”
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Indiana basketball guard Kanaan Carlyle: ‘I feel like defense wins championships’
Much of the focus during the offseason was on IU’s offensive shortcomings, but the team’s defense wasn’t up to Woodson’s standards.
He said as much at the team’s media days in September.
“I’m going to always preach defense, cause I truly believe that’s what wins games,” Woodson said, at IU’s basketball media days. “It keeps you in ball games when you’re struggling to score the basketball. And that’s been a big challenge.”
Indiana’s perimeter defense struggled last season. The Hoosiers allowed 8.6 made 3-pointers per game — they allowed double-digit made 3-pointers in 11 games — and teams shot 34.3% against them. They also ranked near the bottom of the country with 5.2 steals per game.
Carlyle’s mindset is aligned with Woodson’s.
“I feel like defense wins championships,” he said. “I’m going to put my all on the defensive end and I feel like my offense will pick up as my defense picks up.”
It’s a lesson that was reinforced during his time playing with Bruce Thronton at Milton High School and Isiah Collier at Overtime Elite. Milton won a state title when Carlyle was a sophomore in 2021 and he helped YNG Dreamers reach the OTE Championship game.
With Thornton and Collier dominating the ball, Carlyle found other ways to impact the game.
“Everybody can score when you get to D1 and everybody can score when you are a highly-rated high school player,” Carlyle said. “Defense is what sets you apart.”
He hopes anyone turning on the tape from his freshman year at Stanford will notice his defensive intensity.
“Every game I try to go out trying to prove I’m the best defender on the court,” Carlyle said.
It’s the same attitude Carlyle will have for Indiana this season starting with the team’s season-opener against SIUE on Nov. 6.
“Being able to pick up 94 feet and bring that energy to all my teammates no matter the first quarter or fourth quarter,” Carlyle said, of his focus. “That energy can impact a game tremendously.”
Michael Niziolek is the Indiana beat reporter for The Bloomington Herald-Times. You can follow him on X @michaelniziolek and read all his coverage by clicking here.
