By Keith Taylor
Kentucky Today
Kentucky men’s basketball coach John Calipari added a third member to his current signing class on Monday with the addition of Adou Thiero.
Adou Thiero (UK Athletics photo)
Thiero joins Cason Wallace and Chris Livingston, both Top 10 prospects this fall. Thiero is a 6-foot-5, 180 combo guard who averaged 23.3 points, 10.3 rebounds and 5.9 assists per game, leading Quaker Valley to a 27-1 record and a 14-0 mark against league foes.
“Ever since I went to my first Kentucky men’s basketball camp I’ve wanted to go to Kentucky,” Thiero said. “My whole life I’ve been working to get here and when I got this opportunity, I knew I was going to take it because I just liked how Coach Cal is able to develop guys into pro players. He has always been great to his players and my dad played for him, so he had great things to say about him.
“I know Coach Cal and the staff will be able to help me get to where I want to be. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity and I can’t wait to get on campus and work to improve my game and help make this team better.”
Calipari welcomed the addition of Thiero.
“I am excited to have Adou join our program. He is a great kid who comes from a terrific family,” Calipari said. “Adou is a winner who fought through some adversity last summer and then led his team to the state championship game. Much like Dom (Hawkins) and Derek (Willis), Adou understands the grind and process of development here.
“He knows nothing will be easy, but he has great size and has the makeup of the kind of guard who excels here, someone who can play on the ball or off and can finish at the rim in a variety of ways. I can’t wait to coach him and help him reach his goals.”
Thiero’s father, Almamy Thiero, played for Calipari at Memphis from 2003-06 and Mariam Sy Thiero who was drafted No. 33 overall by the Washington Mystics in 2006 after staring at Oklahoma City University.
Keith Taylor is the sports editor for Kentucky Today. Reach him at Keith.taylor@kentuckytoday.com and via Twitter at keithtaylor21.
