Stanford Transfer Guard Kanaan Carlyle Commits To Indiana

Indiana coach Mike Woodson’s recruiting momentum continued with the addition of Stanford guard Kanaan Carlyle, who averaged 11.5 points per game as a freshman in 2023-24.

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Indiana added another talented guard to its backcourt on Saturday, landing Stanford transfer Kanaan Carlyle.

Carlyle is a 6-foot-3, 185-pound guard with three years of eligibility remaining. He’s ranked No. 10 among all players in the transfer portal and No. 1 among combo guards by 247 Sports.

Carlyle is Indiana’s third transfer addition and fourth total newcomer this offseason, joining five-star freshman wing Bryson Tucker, Washington State transfer guard Myles Rice and Arizona transfer center Oumar Ballo. Carlyle has experience at point guard and shooting guard, giving Indiana flexibility in the back court with Rice, as well as returning guards Trey Galloway, Gabe Cupps, Jakai Newton and Anthony Leal.

Indiana lost Kel’el Ware, Xavier Johnson, CJ Gunn, Anthony Walker, Kaleb Banks and Payton Sparks from the 2023-24 roster. It now has three open scholarships heading into Mike Woodson’s fourth year coaching the Hoosiers in 2024-25.

As a freshman at Stanford in 2023-24, Carlyle averaged 11.5 points, 2.7 assists and 2.7 rebounds per game, and he shot 38.6% from the field, 32% from 3-point range and 77.6% at the free throw line. That was enough to earn an honorable mention on the Pac-12 All-Freshman team. 

Carlyle played 23 games and made 16 starts, averaging 25.7 minutes per game. His breakout game came in a 100-82 win over No. 4 Arizona on Dec. 31, scoring 28 points on 6-for-8 3-point shooting. That performance led to Carlyle being named the Associated Press National Player of the Week.

Carlyle’s hot streak continued a few weeks later against Washington State, when he scored a career-high 31 points on 10-for-18 shooting from the field. During Pac-12 play, Carlyle scored at least 10 points in 13 games. Stanford finished the season 14-18 and fired coach Jerod Haase after eight seasons. 

Prior to Stanford, Carlyle was a four-star recruit in the class of 2023 out of Overtime Elite in Atlanta. He was ranked No. 52 in the nation and No. 6 among shooting guards, receiving offers from Alabama, Auburn, Baylor, Florida, Kansas and Tennessee, among others.

Here’s a look at Indiana’s roster as it currently stands. 

• Trey Galloway, one year of eligibility
• Anthony Leal, one year of eligibility
• Oumar Ballo, one year of eligibility
• Malik Reneau, two years of eligibility
• Kanaan Carlyle, three years of eligibility
• Myles Rice, three years of eligibility
• Mackenzie Mgbako, three years of eligibility
• Gabe Cupps, three years of eligibility
• Jakai Newton, four years of eligibility
• Bryson Tucker, four years of eligibility
• Open
• Open
• Open