Wiesbaden's Jordan Thibodeaux shoots over Ramstein's Michael Gonzales in the boys Division I final at the DODEA-Europe basketball championships in Wiesbaden, Germany, Feb. 15, 2025. Wiesbaden beat Ramstein 58-54 to win the title. (Michael Abrams/Stars and Stripes)

In November 2019, David Brown stepped into the Wiesbaden High School gym to meet Darnell Moran Jr.

The then-senior entered with his younger brother, both of whom moved to Hesse, Germany, when their mother, Stacey Thibodeaux, took a job at the elementary school.

While the Warrior boys basketball coach was speaking to Moran Jr., he noticed the younger brother picking up a ball and shooting.

That was the first time Brown met Jordan Thibodeaux. And the two hit it off over their love of basketball.

“From the very first day, he was sure that he could beat me in 1-on-1,” Brown said. “I had to challenge him and show him that you don’t need a great bag to be good at 1-on-1. You just need to be bigger and stronger than the other guy.

“I didn’t do anything else but back him under the basket and shoot, which he thought I was cheating by doing that. So, it was a good first impression for the both of us.”

That wasn’t the lasting impression Thibodeaux left with the DODEA European basketball scene, though.

During his senior season, Thibodeaux posted 19.1 points per game and shot 49.8% from the field, including a whopping 60% on 2-point attempts. His plus/minus was 366 over 435 minutes of play.

The 5-foot-10 point guard was named the Division I tournament MVP after leading the Warriors to an undefeated season and their first European title since 1999.

Because of his exploits, Thibodeaux has been named Stars and Stripes’ 2024-2025 boys basketball Athlete of the Year.

“It feels great,” Thibodeaux said. “It makes me feel like the work I’ve been putting in when nobody’s watching is paying off and finally is being noticed.”

His senior campaign wasn’t a one-off.

Thibodeaux earned first-team All-European honors his junior year after averaging 17.1 points. And he finished his career with 1,007 points, playing 69 varsity games over four seasons.

This season, though, Thibodeaux wasn’t considered “the man” for the Warriors. Brothers Jacob (senior) and Joel (sophomore) Idowu transferred to Wiesbaden from Hohenfels, and they made a trident of major offensive threats.

Thibodeaux benefited from the additions. Not only did his scoring average go up by two points, but his assist-to-turnover ratio jumped from 0.48 his junior season to 0.95 his season year.

“I don’t think it changed my role much because I’ve always been the type of guy to try to get everybody involved,” Thibodeaux said. “I just made my role honestly easier because I had more help, bigger fellas to give the ball to.”

Although the Columbus, Ga., native could defer to his new 6-4 and 6-6 teammates, Thibodeaux still could take over a game. And he chose to do so in the biggest game of his career.

In Wiesbaden’s 58-54 title-game victory over Ramstein on Feb. 15 at Clay Kaserne’s Wiesbaden Sports and Fitness Center, Thibodeaux scored his team’s first six points and dropped 13 points in the opening frame. He finished with a game-high 28 points as the Warriors led from start to finish.

He also showcased his leadership skills late in the game as the wheels almost completely fell off.

The Warriors led by 15 points with 1 minute, 7 seconds left and still enjoyed a nine-point advantage with 19 seconds left. Yet with 5.4 seconds remaining, the Royals had clawed it back to a one-possession game, and the Idowu brothers had fouled out.

In that moment, Thibodeaux calmed down his teammates and sealed the win by splitting a pair at the free-throw line with 0.4 seconds left.

For Brown, though, that wasn’t Thibodeaux’s best performance. He pointed to a JV game Thibodeaux’s freshman year in which the young point guard took over against a much-better opponent.

“We were outmatched,” Brown said of that JV game. “They had way more talent, and he pretty much controlled the entire game. So, the guy that showed up in the championship game, I actually got to see as a freshman.”

Thibodeaux’s final performance was a work of art, which is ironic because he doodles from time to time but doesn’t show anybody.

“I just slap the pencil down and whatever happens,” said Thibodeaux, who also admitted to collecting lanyards. “I try to keep everything to myself.”

As for Thibodeaux’s future, he has a few options to play collegiately but hasn’t made a decision.

Brown said Thibodeaux has held his own against those who have played at the next level – he just needs an opportunity.

Whenever he goes, his coach will remember Thibodeaux as the little guy from their first meeting.

“I’m going to remember him as that first day I saw him, walking in the gym, in love with basketball and doing everything he can to make everyone else around the court is in love with basketball,” Brown said.