Indiana University has almost as storied a men's basketball program as one can find in college hoops. It has gotten to the NCAA Tournament on 41 occasions and has won five national championships, and it is a big part of the lore of Indiana amateur basketball.
Eighty members of the Hoosiers have been taken in the NBA draft. Hall of Famer Isiah Thomas, who led them to the 1981 title, was the No. 2 pick in the 1981 draft, and former pro stars Walt Bellamy and George McGinnis are also former Hoosiers. Among current NBA players, OG Anunoby, Thomas Bryant and Kel'El Ware are Indiana University products.
Three other Indiana University products were once drafted by the Los Angeles Lakers. Here is a look at them.
Tom Abernethy -- forward
Abernethy put up modest stats in his four
seasons with the Hoosiers -- 5.9 points and 3.7 rebounds a game. The Lakers took him in the third round of the 1976 draft, and he averaged 6.5 points and 3.9 rebounds in 18.8 minutes a game during his two years with them.
In five NBA seasons, he had career averages of 5.6 points and 3.2 rebounds per game.
Butch Carter -- guard/forward
Carter also wasn't a big star in his four years with the Hoosiers, as he registered 6.6 points and 2.9 assists a game there. He was a second-round pick by the Lakers in 1980, and he put up 5.6 points in 12.4 minutes a contest as a rookie with Los Angeles.
He stuck around the NBA for six years and had career averages of 8.7 points and 1.9 assists in 18.9 minutes a game.
Jalen Hood-Schifino -- guard
The 6-foot-5 guard played one year with the Hoosiers and averaged 13.5 points and 3.7 assists a game that season. The Lakers saw enough in him to make him the No. 17 pick in the 2023 draft, and it was a head-scratching decision in the minds of many.
Hood-Schifino never panned out with the Lakers. He only managed 1.7 points in 5.3 minutes a game while shooting 23.9% from the field with them. They traded him away as part of the deal that brought them Luka Doncic in February 2025, and he finished out the season with the Philadelphia 76ers. He did not play in the league this past season.
This article originally appeared on LeBron Wire: Every Indiana University player drafted by the Lakers
