Adou Thiero recaps Kentucky visit, previews decision with KSR

Is Kentucky on the cusp of adding another piece to its 2022 recruiting class? That appears to be the case with senior combo guard Adou Thiero, who is fresh off an official visit and ready to make a final decision.

The 6-foot-5 prospect out of Leetsdale, PA made the trip to Lexington last week, visiting Kentucky from April 27-29. After going home and talking things over, Thiero announced Sunday evening he would be making his college commitment on May 8, his birthday and Mother’s Day.

Not-so-coincidentally, John Calipari announced Monday morning that Kentucky had received a silent commitment from a player who would go public with an announcement “shortly.”

“We got one commit,” Calipari said on Sports Talk with Dan Issel & Mike Pratt. “We’ve got another guy committed. He’s going to announce here shortly. We’ve got a kid whose mother and the kid, ‘I’m gonna do this.’”

How did we get to this point with the three-star guard, who finished his career at Quaker Valley (PA) with 1,624 total points? It started with a surprise offer back in March. Calipari went to watch Thiero play in the in the Pennsylvania Class 4A title game, where he finished with 18 points, 10 rebounds and three blocks. After an in-home visit, a scholarship was on the table.

The connection stems from the guard’s father, Almamy Thiero, who played for Calipari at Memphis from 2002-05.

W/ Almany Thiero & his 9-year-old son, Amadou, at camp. Almamy played for me at Memphis. Now I know I’m getting old. pic.twitter.com/cbsMqpJk3p

— John Calipari (@UKCoachCalipari) June 19, 2013

Two decades later, another Thiero is in line to play for Calipari, this time in Lexington.

“Everything was good, the visit was great,” the 6-foot-5 guard told KSR. “I toured the facility, got dinner with the coaches, everything was good. It was good to just get to know everybody really, everybody around the whole program.”

Thiero averaged 23.3 points, 10.3 rebounds, 5.9 assists, 3.9 steals and 2.3 blocks per game as a senior at Quaker Valley. He finished the year knocking down 52% of his shots, 29% of his 3-pointers and 77% of his free throws. Growing ten inches from 5-7 to 6-5 between his freshman and senior seasons, the UK target is still stretching out, leaving his role up in the air in college. Calipari made it clear, though, Thiero is wanted in Lexington regardless.

“Conversations were about the opportunity, how it’s a big family and everything,” he told KSR. “He says I’m going to have a great chance there. We didn’t really specify roles a lot, we just talked about the things I could do there. He says he doesn’t know what I would play yet, but that could be figured out down the road.”

What kind of role does Thiero envision playing at the next level? He likes doing it all on both ends of the floor.

“I like to be a scorer that can also create for his teammates. You can say I’m just a playmaker, kind of,” he said. “I do like defense a lot. I kind of like offense more, but defense wins championships, so you have to play a little harder on defense.”

Thiero will be announcing his next stop on Sunday to celebrate not his birthday, but Mother’s Day. He’ll be choosing “between the offers I have on the table right now,” he says, with no official list. Those schools? Kentucky, Maryland, Xavier, Cincinnati and Pittsburgh, among others.

His dad played under Calipari at Memphis, while his mom, Mariam Sy, was a 2006 WNBA Draft selection. Thiero leaned on both parents to help guide him through the recruiting process, one that will come to a close in the coming days.

“They basically say go to the school that shows you the most love and where you know you’ll get a chance,” Thiero told KSR. “Somewhere that will develop you and get you to the league.”

Which program will come out on top?

“The school that shows me the most love with fans and coaches,” he added. “I want to go somewhere I know I’ll be able to develop.”

Calipari hopes (and expects) that school is Kentucky.