Indiana in Contact With Kentucky Transfer Adou Thiero

Adou Thiero entered the transfer portal after averaging 7.2 points and 5.0 rebounds as a sophomore at Kentucky, and Indiana is one of many schools that has reached out.

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Another transfer with reported interest from Indiana is Kentucky forward Adou Thiero.

Thiero has heard from Pittsburgh, Miami, Arizona, Oregon, Gonzaga, Ohio State, Indiana, Xavier, NC State, Arkansas, Texas A&M, Creighton, Richmond, Georgia, UCSB, Penn State, Mizzou, DePaul, Georgetown, Ole Miss and Duquesne, according to ESPN's Jeff Borzello.

Thiero, a 6-foot-8 forward, averaged 7.2 points, 5.0 rebounds, 1.1 assists, 1.1 blocks and 0.7 assists per game as a sophomore in 2023-24. He started 19 games and played in 25, averaging 21.3 minutes per game. Thiero shot 49.2% from the field, 80% from the free throw line and made 7-of-22 3-point attempts.

Thiero scored double-digit points in five games last season, and those performances came against some of Kentucky's top opponents, including Gonzaga, Auburn, Alabama and a career-high 16 points against Kansas.

Thiero is ranked as the No. 14 transfer this offseason by 247 Sports, which wrote about what he could bring to a new team.

"Don't let the numbers fool you, Adou Thiero is a highly impactful transfer," Travis Branham wrote. "He has great physical tools, is a big-time athlete, and competes on both ends of the floor. Thiero is not far from polishing his jumper to push him over the edge and become a NBA Draft pick. The former Wildcat will bring defense, physicality, rebounding and intangibles to his next team.

As a freshman at Kentucky in 2022-23, he played 9.7 minutes per game in 20 appearances and averaged 2.3 points and 1.9 rebounds. Thiero originally committed to Kentucky in the class of 2022 as a three-star recruit, ranked No. 169 in the nation out of Quaker Valley High School in Leetsdale, Pa.

He's experienced a significant growth spurt in recent years, going from 6-foot-4 in high school to 6-foot-8 as a sophomore at Kentucky. He played guard and handled the ball frequently, but mostly played small forward and power forward for Kentucky. That history perhaps helps him contribute in a variety of ways at the college level, in addition to his impressive athleticism. He has two years of eligibility left.

Indiana's prior relationship with Thiero could help in its recruiting efforts this time around. Though coach Mike Woodson didn't offer him a scholarship in high school, Thiero took an unofficial visit to Indiana for a game in 2022.

Indiana currently has six open scholarships heading into the 2024-25 season. Its lone addition this offseason is five-star wing Bryson Tucker, but Indiana has been recruiting plenty of players in the transfer portal. Following the 2024-25 season, Indiana lost Xavier Johnson, Anthony Walker, Kel'el Ware, CJ Gunn, Kaleb Banks and Payton Sparks.

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• INDIANA BASKETBALL TRANSFER PORTAL TRACKER: The college basketball transfer portal is in full swing. Here you can find all the Indiana basketball transfer portal news, including incoming and outgoing transfers, players with interest from Indiana, NBA draft entrants and a scholarship chart for next season. CLICK HERE