Arkansas forward Adou Thiero selected 36th overall (early second round) by Los Angeles Lakers in 2025 NBA Draft on Thursday

By Kevin McPherson

LITTLE ROCK — Arkansas junior Adou Thiero was selected No. 36 overall (sixth pick of the second round) by the Los Angeles Lakers (via the Brooklyn Nets) on day two of the 2025 NBA Draft on Thursday in Brooklyn, N.Y., giving the Razorbacks men’s basketball program its fourth draft pick spanning the last three years while also marking John Calipari’s first draft pick as Head Hog.

A source told Hogville in late May that Thiero (6-6 forward) had received at least one draft guarantee in the second round, a scenario that may have contributed to Thiero remaining in the draft in lieu of returning to Arkansas for his senior season.

Thiero joins a trio of former Hogs to be drafted in the last three years, a group that includes one-and-dones Anthony Black (first-round lottery pick), Nick Smith, Jr. (first-round pick), and Jordan Walsh (second-round pick) who were all selected in the 2023 draft. Going back to 2015, Arkansas has a total of nine former players drafted.

Thiero presumably will play his rookie season for arguably the most iconic franshise in NBA history — the 17-time champion Lakers, who are under new ownership in a recent move that came at a reported price tag of $10 billion, which establised a worldwide record for valuation among all professional ogranizations spanning all sports.

The Lakers are headlined by superstars LeBron James and Luka Doncic, and emerging guard Austin Reaves — originally an undrafted free agent — who is a native of Cedar Ridge, Ark.

In mid-May, Thiero minimally participated among the 80 or so draft-eligible players who took part in the NBA Draft Combine in Chicago, and he also took part in Klutch Sports pro day.

Prior to a knee injury that kept him out of the Hogs’ lineup for eight consecutive games at the end of the 2024-25 regular season and most of the postseason, Thiero led the team in scoring (15.6 points per game), rebounding (6.0), and steals (1.7) while shooting 54.8% from the field.

He did return for Arkansas’ NCAA Tournament Sweet Sixteen game against Texas Tech in March, contributing 1 point, 1 rebound, and 1 turnover in only 5 minutes of playing time.

Thiero played his first two collegiate seasons at Kentucky before transferring to Arkansas in the offseason.