2024-25 IU basketball player profile: Luke Goode

  • Oct 14, 2024 10:23 am in

With the start of college basketball season approaching, we’ve moved from our look at other Big Ten programs to our player-by-player previews of the 2024-25 Indiana roster.

Today, our player profiles continue with senior Luke Goode.

Previously: Bryson Tucker, Jakai Newton, Myles Rice, Mackenzie Mgbako, Gabe Cupps, Kanaan Carlyle, Malik Reneau, Oumar Ballo, Dallas James, Langdon Hatton

Shooting was a clear deficiency for Indiana basketball during Mike Woodson’s third season in Bloomington.

The Hoosiers shot just 32.4 percent on 3s, which ranked 255th nationally. From a volume perspective, only 20.9 percent of Indiana’s points came from 3. That ranked 355th in the country.

The addition of Luke Goode should better equip Indiana to make perimeter shots this season. The 6-foot-7 senior is an Indiana native who played the last three seasons at Illinois.

Goode grew up in Fort Wayne as an IU fan. His father, Craig, played football at IU and his uncle, Trent Green, was a quarterback for the Hoosiers who went on to have a long NFL career.

“Growing up as an Indiana basketball player, I’m sure Anthony (Leal) said this before, and Trey (Galloway), guys that have played high school basketball in the state at a high level, kind of your goal is to get to IU or Purdue,” Goode said last month on the Players Perspective podcast with Miller Kopp. “I would definitely say that. So it was a pretty cool opportunity when I was in the portal, when IU reached out. It was one of those things. It was like, ‘you know what, I see a hole in the team. You know, they need a shooter, a knockdown shooter. They’ve got playmakers and the big guys, it makes sense.’”

At Illinois, Goode was a part of a program that won at a high level. Last season, the Fighting Illini won the Big Ten tournament championship and advanced to the Elite Eight. Goode also played on the Illini’s regular-season Big Ten title team in the 2021-22 season.

Over three seasons in Champaign, he averaged 4.1 points and 2.6 rebounds in 15.2 minutes per game.

While those numbers don’t jump off the stat sheet, Goode’s prowess as a 3-point shooter drew the interest of the Indiana coaching staff. Last season as a junior for Illinois, he shot 61-for-157 on 3s (38.9 percent). Goode amassed those numbers in just 20.2 minutes per game. The Hoosiers didn’t have a player on the roster a season ago who made more than 50 triples.

In Bloomington, Goode is expected to come off the bench and play primarily at the three. He could also see some minutes at the four when Oumar Ballo or Malik Reneau go to the bench and the Hoosiers opt to go smaller with more shooting.

“I’d like to get to some small ball this year,” Woodson said last month at media day. “Like I’d had in New York, where Mack and Goode can play some four, and we can still be athletic enough out on the floor with one of the bigs to compete at a high level. I’ve experimented with it a little bit this summer into fall play.”

Goode should also be able to help the Hoosiers on the glass. Last season for the Illini, he grabbed 40 offensive rebounds in 38 games. That’s a higher total than Mackenzie Mgbako (34) and Trey Galloway (27) pulled down a season ago.

Bottom line: It was logical for the Hoosiers to pursue Goode, one of the most productive role players in the Big Ten a season ago. Goode is enthusiastic about being in Bloomington and suiting up for the Hoosiers. And his best skill – shooting – is a clear area of need for the program. After three highly successful seasons at Illinois, he arrives with a winning mentality and the expectation of a deep run in the NCAA tournament.

Quotable: “Throughout the years at Illinois, everybody always asks me, what’s the toughest place to play? Where’s your favorite place to play on the road? And my top three stays the same. It’s IU, Purdue, and Rutgers, those three. So, the RAC is crazy. That’s number three. And then IU-Purdue is one and two, it’s very close. I mean, Indiana is a lot bigger, but Mackey, I mean, I feel like they’re on top of you when they’re cheering. So it’s a crazy feeling. So, being able to play in front of the fans and they cheer for you instead of cheer against you when air ball a shot five feet short. It’s gonna be nice. It’s gonna be nice. So looking forward to it for sure.” – Goode on the Players Perspective podcast.

Media day interview with Goode:

(Photo credit: IU Athletics)

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