Potential lottery pick Hannes Steinbach is placing his name in the 2026 NBA draft, Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress tweets.
The German-born forward put up stellar stats in his lone season with the University of Washington, posting averages of 18.5 points, 11.8 rebounds, 1.6 assists, 1.2 blocks and 1.1 steals per game in 30 starts. The standout freshman shot 57.7 percent from the field and 34 percent on three-point attempts.
Givony projects the 6’11” Steinbach as a top-20 pick; ESPN’s Jeremy Woo has him as the No. 15 overall prospect on his current big board.
Here’s more draft news:
- Kentucky sophomore big man Jayden Quaintance announced on Tuesday in a social media post that he’s declaring for the 2026 draft (Instagram link). Quaintance is a projected first-rounder despite knee issues that have marred his two college seasons. He averaged 9.4 points, 7.9 rebounds, 2.6 blocks and 1.1 steals per game as a freshman at Arizona State before suffering a torn ACL and meniscus in his right knee. Persistent knee issues limited him to four games with the Wildcats this past season. The 6’10” forward/center is listed as ESPN’s No. 20 prospect.
- Another projected first-rounder, Baylor’s Cameron Carr, is declaring for the draft, Givony tweets. Carr averaged 18.9 points, 5.8 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game while shooting 38% from three as a junior this past season. The 6’5” Carr, who played just 18 games at Tennessee in his first two college seasons, will not enter the transfer portal and intends to go pro, Givony adds. Carr is rated 24th overall by ESPN.
- Arkansas guard Meleek Thomas will declare for the draft but maintain his college eligibility, Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports tweets. Thomas averaged 15.6 points, 3.8 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.5 steals per contest in his freshman season with the Razorbacks, knocking down 41.6% of his three-point attempts. He’s currently rated No. 28 by ESPN.
Give me Jayden at 15 and I’ll be ecstatic. Offensively he can grow but defensively he will be good if healthy.
Quaintance or Steinbach, if either falls to #24/25, would be a good choice for the NYK. I like the guards (Carr and Thomas) too, but prefer to add to the 4/5 spots, given the thin depth chart there. Also have #31 (top SRP).
Warriors need Steinbach more than they need anything. Get Podz a big so he can at least pnr (and likely brick it anyway).
Steinbach should be at end of lottery. Hornets will not pass on him. Bulls get that Blazer pick. They should be looking at him. He is fundamentally sound. He can start for them next yr.
Knicks have two solid picks this yr. First pick has to be best available. If Michigan PF M Johnson is there. Gotta take him. Knicks picks will depend a lot on how they finish this yr. Is Towns staying or not. He is not a max player to me. I like our picks. Have to wait and see how we do.
Steinbach and Quaintance are nice PF’s prospects
It’s a great draft to go all in to do a rebuild