Mandatory Credit: Nelson Chenault-Imagn Images

Lakers Move Up in the 2025 NBA Draft and Picks Former Kentucky Power Forward Adou Thiero

At just 21 years old, Adou Thiero has experienced a meteoric rise in college basketball.

Mandatory Credit: Nelson Chenault-Imagn Images

The Los Angeles Lakers started Thursday with the 55th pick in the second round of the 2025 NBA Draft. Two trades later, they moved up to 36th and got a young name for their big man. After a negotiation with the Minnesota Timberwolves, the Lakers took over the pick and chose to select power forward Adou Thiero.

The Los Angeles Lakers have agreed in principle to acquire the draft rights to Adou Thiero, the 36th overall pick in the 2025 NBA Draft, in a trade that is expected to be finalized at a later date. pic.twitter.com/2h0YxpwTFL
— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) June 27, 2025

The information about the trade was anticipated by Shams Charania, from ESPN in the United States. During the afternoon, the franchise had already completed a transaction with the Chicago Bulls. At the time, they gave up pick 55 and an undisclosed amount of money to secure pick 45. This, in turn, became pick 36, originally from the Timberwolves, in addition to a new amount of money.

It is no secret that Los Angeles is looking to reinforce its big man throughout the offseason. Before the last trade deadline, the Californians even agreed to a trade for Mark Williams, from the Charlotte Hornets. The center, however, failed the franchise’s medical exams and ended up being returned to the North Carolina team.

Who is Adou Thiero, the new Lakers player?

At just 21 years old, Adou Thiero has experienced a meteoric rise in college basketball. Thus, he spent three seasons defending the traditional University of Arkansas. In the first, at first, he had discreet averages, with only 2.3 points and 1.9 rebounds per game. On the other hand, in the last one, he increased his numbers to 15.1 points, 5.8 rebounds and 1.6 steals.

The Adou Thiero highlights are pretty insane. Can't wait for Summer League! pic.twitter.com/eWhC6nPgwh
— Trevor Lane (@Trevor_Lane) June 27, 2025

Possessing great physical strength, the rookie stands out for his excellent defensive work, protecting the rim with great quality and collecting rebounds consistently. In addition, he can attack the paint with quality, taking advantage of his imposing size to guarantee points close to the basket. His 3-point shot, however, still appears to be his only weak point. In his last year in the NCAA, he made only 25.6% of his attempts.

Mandatory Credit: Nelson Chenault-Imagn Images

Adou Thiero

Los Angeles Lakers

Gulshan Sharma

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A native of Jaipur, Rajasthan, journalist, and a complete soccer and basketball fan, he found the huge interest with basketball by watching videos of Allen Iverson and Tony Parker, but fell head over heels in love with the sport during the Warriors’ championship era (2015-2018). A sports game addict since his late PS1, he’s also passionate about the Eagles, Inter Miami and the Fever. He’s fortunate to have seen all his favorite teams win championships. He also has a special love for cricket and football (soccer), where he is a fan of Royal Challengers Bangalore and Barcelona.