Early life and high school career
Thiero was born on May 8, 2004 in Salt Lake City, Utah. [1] [2] His parents, Almamy and Mariam, immigrated to the U.S. from Mali and both played college basketball; his father Almamy for Memphis under coach John Calipari and then for Duquesne, while his mother Mariam for Oklahoma City. [3] His mother was selected in the 2006 WNBA draft by the Washington Mystics. [4]
Thiero, born in the U.S., spent his early years in Mali with his grandmother, while his parents played college basketball. [3] In 2007, at age three, he returned to the U.S. [3] He attended Quaker Valley High School in Leetsdale, Pennsylvania, where he played basketball, soccer, and lacrosse. [5] A combo guard, he led Quaker Valley in scoring as a sophomore, averaging 17.7 points per game. [3] Then, as a junior in 2020–21, he remained their leading scorer and averaged 21.8 points as well as a team-leading 5.1 assists, 2.2 steals, and 1.2 blocks per game. [3]
As a senior, Thiero averaged 23.3 points, 10.3 rebounds, 5.9 assists, 3.9 steals and 2.3 blocks per game, helping the team compile a record of 27–1 while being undefeated in league play; their only loss came in the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association (PIAA) championship game. [5] He set a school record with 44 points in a game, finished third in school history with 1,624 career points, and received several honors after his senior season including Western Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic League (WPIAL) Player of the Year, TribLive HSSN Boys Basketball Player of the Year, and Pennsylvania Class 4A Player of the Year. [5] He committed to playing college basketball for Kentucky, coached by John Calipari, who had coached his father in college. [3] [6]
College career
Kentucky
As a freshman at Kentucky in 2022–23, Thiero appeared in 20 games, averaging 9.5 minutes per game, and recorded averages of 2.3 points and 1.9 rebounds. [7] He was the team leader in steals in four games and in blocks in three games. [5] In 2023–24, he saw more playing time, appearing in 25 games, 19 as a starter, while missing eight due to injury. [8] He averaged 7.2 points and five rebounds per game, also totaling 27 blocks which was second on the team. [9] He was Kentucky's leading rebounder in eight games and had five games where he scored double figures; he also posted a double-double in their game against No. 1 ranked Kansas, scoring 16 points and 13 rebounds. [5] After the season, Thiero entered his name in the 2024 NBA draft and the NCAA transfer portal. [10]
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