Lyle Thompson (born September 9, 1992) is a Haudenosaunee professional lacrosse player from the Hawk Clan of the Onondaga Confederacy of the Six Nations of the Grand River. His native name is 'Deyhahsanoondey', which translates into 'He's Flying Over Us'. He plays both indoor and outdoor professional lacrosse. In professional outdoor lacrosse, he plays at the attack position for the Cannons Lacrosse Club of the Premier Lacrosse League. In professional indoor lacrosse, he plays at the forward position for the Georgia Swarm of the National Lacrosse League. He has also competed internationally in both indoor lacrosse for Haudenosaunee men's national indoor lacrosse team, and outdoor lacrosse for the Haudenosaunee men's national outdoor lacrosse team.
He played lacrosse in college at the University at Albany. In his junior year he shared the 2014 men's Tewaaraton Award with his older brother Miles. In the same year, that attack line consisting of those two and their cousin, Ty Thompson, dubbed the "Thompson Trio", shattered multiple NCAA Division 1 records, and is widely considered one of the greatest attack lines in college lacrosse history. In his senior year, he won the award again alone, while also setting a new division 1 career points record of 400 points. He is the only male player in history to win the Tewaaraton Award twice consecutively, and one of only two to win it twice, the other being Mikey Powell.
Lyle Thompson is widely considered one of the greatest lacrosse players of all time, and the greatest lacrosse player of his generation. He is particularly known for his extraordinary stick skills, offensive prowess and keen playmaking ability.
Lyle is credited with pioneering the backhand shot, also known as the shovel shot, which is the salient component of his signature move, the 'Deyhaus Dunk'. Also, he is credited with popularizing one-handed bottom-hand play, especially in dodging. It is a skill he developed while having one arm restricted during recovery from a collarbone injury. Together, the Thompson collective has popularized the traditional Indigenous American style of playing lacrosse, involving a more inspired, freestyle, versatile approach that incorporates a wider variety of stick handling, passing and shooting techniques, previously considered more unorthodox. They have been an inspiration and served as role models to the next generation of lacrosse players, especially within the Indigenous American community.
He cofounded the lacrosse company 'Thompson Brothers Lacrosse', which engages in event speaking, lacrosse development projects, and community building initiatives, while emphasizing the indigenous roots of the sport.
Lyle Thompson is also an active humanitarian, using his platform for positive change, and has won humanitarian awards multiple times for these ventures. Among these pursuits are his participation in the #everychildmatters movement and spreading awareness about the atrocities of the residential schools that were designed to indoctrinate Indigenous children into Christian Canadian culture.
Early life
Lyle grew up on the Native American reservation, Onondaga Nation, NY. He is the second youngest of the five children of Jerome "Ji" Thompson Sr., a third generation ironworker with 'Ironworkers Local 60', and his wife, Doloris Thompson. His three older brothers Jeremy Thompson, Jerome (“Hiana”) Thompson and Miles Thompson are also professional lacrosse players, along with his cousin Ty Thompson, who is from the Mohawk Nation. In accordance with Iroquois tradition, he and his brothers were each given a wooden stick as a newborn. He began playing lacrosse from a very early age as lacrosse carries spiritual and cultural significance with the Onondaga nation. Growing up, he and his brothers would spend much of their time playing lacrosse in the backyard, often with their father coaching them for hours.
In 1999, the Thompsons moved from St. Regis Mohawk Reservation south to the Onondaga Reservation. The Onondaga house that they grew up in was built by Ji himself, and had no electricity or running water until about 2003. This was a factor in the amount of time they spent playing backyard lacrosse, as they did not have things like television or video games. Lyle had not grown up doing strength training, and developed those attributes later in his career.