Adou Thiero Recaps Duquesne Visit; Talks Kentucky, Pitt

Perhaps the Pittsburgh-area’s best high school basketball player this year, Adou Thiero has seen his name blow up onto the division one college recruiting scene over the past few months.

Thiero entered the season with one offer, coming from UC Santa Barbara. Then, as the season progressed and the 6-foot-5 guard continued to shine, his interest ramped up. He started to hear from schools like Ohio State, Indiana, Marquette, and others. Things were certainly trending in the right direction for him to play high-major ball at the next level.

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Thiero then led his Quaker Valley team on an incredible run alongside star senior Markus Frank, as the two took the Quakers all the way to a WPIAL Class 4A title victory. After that, they continued their dominance, earning their way all the way to the PIAA state finals. Shortly after, Thiero’s recruitment blew up with offers from Duquesne, Kentucky, Maryland, Pitt, and Cincinnati in March.

High School Chapter is officially close, Thank you for ever lasting Memories. We love you @Adou_Thiero pic.twitter.com/HUW6AEEIwl

— Prospects Basketball (@prospectsbball) April 11, 2022

Duquesne was the first out of the schools to host Thiero on an official visit, and it did so just last weekend.

“The Duquesne visit was great,” Thiero told Pittsburgh Sports Now. “Really loved it over there. First, we started off touring the school, seeing everything. Facilities and all. We had already been there for an unofficial, so we already saw campus. We went through the facilities again, met with more people, met some other players on visits, and it was just a great time. Later, we went to look where the players stayed and everything, and then went out to dinner.”

Thiero has been speaking with head coach Keith Dambrot for months now, and has built up a solid relationship with the sixth-year head coach of the Dukes.

“I can tell he really wants me, and that he really knows what he’s doing,” Thiero said about Dambrot. “I think he’s a great coach, just from outside looking in, really. The coaching staff., they’re all great guys. Funny, talkative, they were able to make me feel comfortable.”

Out of all of the schools that have shown interest, he said Kentucky, Pitt, Duquesne, and Maryland have been reaching out most often. Thiero included that he speaks with a staffer from each program every day.

As for the next step? Let’s talk visits. Where else will Thiero be taking a trip?

“Hopefully we should be visiting Pitt, Kentucky, and Maryland in the next two weeks,” he said. “Still figuring that out, but I know Kentucky and Maryland are going to be official visits. We’ll see about Pitt because it’s already close, and we really don’t need to do two or three days there.”

Thiero’s father, Almamy Thiero, played for Kentucky head coach John Calipari at Memphis back when Calipari was manning the helm there. Now, after years of knowing Calipari well because of his dad, Adou is getting the same treatment and has been hearing from Calipari for the past couple of months regularly.

“That relationship is good because he coached my dad, and I even went to his camp in fourth or fifth grade, and he just always treated us well,” Thiero said about Calipari. “He showed us that we are family friends and everything, not just that he coached my dad. He was always checking in on us, making sure I was doing okay and my siblings were doing okay. I could just really tell that he cared for us.”

For Pitt, another local school in the mix, Thiero said, associate head coach Milan Brown talks with him the most out of all of the staffers.

“I talk to Milan Brown the most,” he said. “I just got off the phone with him today. He talks to me every day or every other day.”

Thiero does not yet know when exactly he is going to commit. Until then, fans of all four fan bases will be on the edge of their seat anticipating an announcement.