Indiana's Anthony Leal, Luke Goode Were 'Interested' in TBT, Missed Due to Waivers

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- As he's done hundreds, if not thousands, of times before, Anthony Leal strolled into a basketball practice Thursday at Cook Hall in Bloomington.

But this time, it wasn't his -- though it could've been.

Leal, a 6-foot-5, 205-pound guard, stopped by Cook Hall to observe practice for Assembly Ball, the Indiana alumni-based team competing in The Basketball Tournament. Assembly Ball begins a six-game, win-or-go-home quest for $1 million at 4 p.m. Saturday inside Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.

The 24-year-old Leal, who finished his five-year Hoosier career in March, isn't a member of the 15-player Assembly Ball roster. But his exclusion -- nor that of 2024-25 Hoosier forward Luke Goode -- doesn't stem from a lack of mutual interest.

Assembly Ball general manager AJ Mahar told Indiana Hoosiers On SI that he had positive discussions with Leal and Goode, but the delay in their quests for additional NCAA eligibility ultimately took the option off the table.

"I spoke to both of those guys about doing this," Mahar said Thursday. "They both were interested and wanted to. I was like, 'This is great,' because now this is kind of moving into the next generation of alums, but just going to have to wait a year."

Once the Hoosiers' season ended in March, Leal and Goode submitted waivers to the NCAA seeking an extra year of eligibility, but both players were denied. Leal didn't receive word of the NCAA's decision until July 2, and Goode's wait lasted until July 15.

While Leal and Goode waited, so did Mahar -- until he no longer could.

"When they found out they (didn't get) it, we had already used every roster spot that we're allowed by TBT," Mahar said. "So I couldn't even add them late, because we have no idea what the end date is of knowing what the waiver process is going to be. They can't commit.

"And I needed to field the team for obvious reasons. I didn't want to do injustice to the guys that committed, because we want to win this thing. So, I wanted to make sure we had enough bodies. And when they both got declined, literally every roster spot was already taken."

Leal, who hails from Bloomington, and Goode, a Fort Wayne native, were two of the Hoosiers' most popular players during the 2024-25 campaign. First-year Indiana head coach Darian DeVries initially left two scholarships open for them to return, and Goode practiced with the Hoosiers this summer while awaiting his waiver fate.

Both Leal and Goode went through Senior Day festivities in March, but for several months, it appeared they'd be back in front of the Hoosier faithful sooner than expected -- be it on DeVries' first roster or playing for Mahar and Assembly Ball.

Yet a combination of the NCAA's waiver process and The Basketball Tournament's roster submission requirements derailed both opportunities.

"They were definitely interested, (and) we wanted to have them," Mahar said. "It didn't work out with what TBT allows us to carry. And like I said, having to make sure we have enough bodies for guys coming and going throughout the event -- I had to add more than normal, unfortunately.

"It would've been great to have had both of them."

Assembly Ball begins its second season in TBT on Saturday. The team features 11 former Hoosiers, headlined by guard Yogi Ferrell and forward Juwan Morgan.

Mahar said recruiting and roster-building is a year-round process. With Goode and Leal, he appears to have two early commitments for Assembly Ball's third iteration -- though with better timing, their TBT debuts could've come much sooner.

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