The Lakers trading up twice in the draft made one thing clear: they were targeting Arkansas standout Adou Thiero. The excitement around him grew, but a knee injury kept him sidelined for 13 games. His chance finally came against the Bucks after late roster setbacks. In five sharp minutes, the 21-year-old delivered, rising for an explosive dunk that marked his first NBA points and a brief look at the potential L.A. invested in.

During the final minutes of the game, Bronny James stole the ball and carried it to the other end before bouncing it to Thiero, who slam dunked it for his first NBA bucket. Of course,…

All the Lakers fans were thrilled watching the rookie shove the ball into the net as he hung from the rim for a good few seconds. So much so that they took to social media after the game to make a clear demand from their head coach, JJ Redick. The demand?

Several fans across the internet were disappointed with the Lakers’ head coach, as they thought he did not give Adou Thiero much of a run. Meanwhile, they also expressed their feelings about them wanting the rookie to replace the likes of Jarred Vanderbilt.

Lakers Nation comes together to make a clear demand regarding Adou Thiero

Five minutes was all it took for 21-year-old Adou Thiero to impress the Lakers Nation. Following his energetic off-the-bench cameo during LA’s thumping 119-95 win over Milwaukee, the Purple & Gold faithful now want to see more of the talented forward on the court. “He can have every Vanderbilt minute,” a fan wrote after Saturday’s game.

Should Thiero be getting many more minutes from now on? Debatable, but the sentiment has been taking shape as another fan urged head coach JJ Redick to use Adou Thiero and Deandre Ayton as a frontcourt duo rather than Jaxson Hayes and Jarred Vanderbilt. “Thiero and Ayton in Hayes and Vando out,” he commented.

The rage against the duo is completely understandable, given that both Vando and Hayes have been pretty slow to start the season. So far, Vanderbilt is averaging just 4.6 points along with 5.6 rebounds. Hayes is averaging 5.1 points along with 3 rebounds, which isn’t too impressive, especially when you take into account that both are averaging 18.4 and 16.8 minutes per game.

That may be why one fan sounded confident about Thiero cutting into the rotation, noting his energy and insisting, “You can’t tell he has a motor. Don’t worry, guys, he’ll take Vandos minutes soon.” Another pushed the idea further, arguing that Thiero should not only replace Jarred Vanderbilt in the lineup but that it might be time for the veteran forward to move on from Los Angeles altogether.

“Count your days, Vando,” he wrote, suggesting that the 26-year-old forward can now be traded. As harsh as it may sound, that might soon be a reality if the Los Angeles Lakers receive a good deal for Vanderbilt. Meanwhile, another fan was deeply moved not by Adou Thiero’s dunk but by his defensive work, which seemed to have been overshadowed by his dunk.

“Moving like a 2nd-3rd year on defense in game one, I’m so moved,” the comment read on X. The user suggested that the 21-year-old rookie was moving like a seasoned pro on the other end of the court. Although his box score might show 1 rebound, Thiero did look quite comfortable on defense. Now, whether his debut will prompt Redick to give him more minutes against the Jazz? That’d be worth watching.