Whenever summer league basketball rolls around, the most devoted of fans will always tune in to find out which of their young players appear ready to carve out a role with the main roster in the fall. The Los Angeles Lakers have a handful of players who are worth paying close attention to. Few, if any, of them are more intriguing than Adou Thiero.
The hype around Thiero and his ridiculous athleticism was immediate in Laker land. After injuries slowed down his rookie season, the mystery surrounding him has not gone away. For the most part, Adou is still very much so operating as a great unknown for the Lakers.
That is why fans will try their best to make their assessments this summer in the lead-up to a 2026-27 campaign where his injection of youth and athleticism would greatly aid the forward spots. There are some insights that can be drawn from watching Thiero play in July.
Seeing the added grasp over how well Adou can use his athleticism to his advantage will be important. Beyond that, there are only so many inferences that can be made on his game when his responsibilities will be largely different when Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves share the floor with him.
Adou Thiero's fit beside Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves will be unknown until the fall
Thiero is still at a point of his development where having guys who can create offense for him is going to make the world of a difference. That could even prove true of his entire NBA career, really. That is why judging his offensive game will be incredibly tough this summer.
Doncic is one of the best offensive engines in the entire NBA. The level of playmaking Thiero will have in Luka versus anyone playing with him in the summer league is galaxies apart.
Reaves is no slouch either. While the other star guard in the Lakers backcourt does not quite have the same chops for setting up his teammates, Austin is very far from incapable.
That is why Lakers fans should not be too discouraged if they see Thiero struggle on the offensive end this summer. It would certainly be great to see some self-creation and ability to finish. However, those opportunities will be there in spades and with a level of incomparable ease when 2026-27 arrives.
How Thiero uses his athleticism to impact defense, the boards, etc. might be a more intriguing watch. If the IQ can catch up to the hustle and ability, that will offer plenty of reason for celebration.
Once training camp is here, Thiero will be tasked with figuring out how to be an off-ball weapon around Doncic and Reaves. That role will inevitably be hard to compare to his upcoming body of work at the Las Vegas Summer League.
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