Hannes Steinbach Outlook
Quick Outlook on 2026 NBA Draft Prospect Hannes Steinbach
If Domantas Sabonis was in the 2026 NBA Draft, where would you take him? What about a more athletic Domantas Sabonis? Hannes Steinbach, the German Big playing for Washington this year, looks to me like he models alot of his game off this NBA Star. Last year Steinbach as an 18 year old measured very well for his age in my Player Evaluation Model. With the recent influx of Foreign Players going to play in the NCAA I was unsure what to make of Steinbach going to Washington but he has been absolutely killing it for them, averaging 18.2 PPG, 11.1 RPG, 1.5 APG, 1.1 SPG, 1.2 BPG.
If you are new here I will link a post down below that explains this model these ratings come from and how it measures prospects.
NBA Draft Prospect Evaluation Model
If you have read my other recent posts, you would know that I have been working on an Excel Code to rank NBA Draft Prospects. After multiple iterations I have finally found something that I am happy with. This model is based on the following:
Steinbach took a massive leap going from a good prospect at 18 to what looks like a can’t miss at 19. I never input college data into this model before as I have made it to adjust via League Prestige for various leagues overseas, but unsure how to factor in college basketball here. However without any adjustments he grades very high… if we take a look like some players who also graded like this that I would compare him to:
Now I don’t think Steinbach is half the player Sengun was coming out. I looked at Sengun as a top talent in his respective draft, not just because of this wild rating he got here but he was an elite prospect at 18. I see Steinabch as a more athletic Sabonis, he has an amazing IQ and just seems to put himself in the right spot to be able to make plays. The main difference I see is the ability to come off screens with the ball. Sabonis was never agile or had the handle to have these types of plays drawn up for him but Steinbach for his size has a good first step and can out the ball on the floor and get a bucket When he gets to the NBA he will need to use this IQ I talk about to start creating for others and unlock his full potential.
People are ecstatic about this draft, as they should be, there are many high level players that will contribute day 1 to a franchise but I can tell there are multiple guys who we will look back on and go how did he fall to this spot. Hannes Steinabach looks to be one of them.
Ideal Fit: Memphis
Just traded Jaren Jackson and the PF spot is wide open. Zach Edey needsto play with a big who is more athletic and can stretch the floor.