Hannes Steinbach: The Tape of Wrath
With years of accolades predating his fast start at Washington, Hannes Steinbach stands out; there's a ton that Rowan Kent loves about Steinbach in a crowded big man class for the 2026 NBA Draft.
Wrath gets a bad rap. Sure, it is one of the Seven Deadly Sins, none of which are traits that regular people like to display in their everyday lives. And yes, I would hazard a guess that the most common phrase, “feel my wrath,” is not one anyone would want to hear directed their way.
Where, then, could there be a use for, as the dictionary puts it, “extreme anger?” Well, let’s start with the game of basketball. This won’t be an article advocating another Malice at the Palace, nor will it encourage players to play angrily. Every player needs a mental space to reach their best. For some, that might be inner peace and tranquility; for others, it may be a state of seeing red.
This article examines how a particular player plays his game. That player is Washington’s Hannes Steinbach. Wrath may not be the first word that comes to mind when watching his game, but make no mistake: the way that Steinbach plays, the way he controls the game, and the impact he has on his opponents are all done in a way that inspires extreme emotions.
So what is it about Steinbach’s play that might make opponents fear his wrath? How does his cold, calm persona belie the type of wrath that he plays with at the rim? And where else can he impose his game both this year and next year in the NBA that he may be barely showing for the Huskies so far this season?
Simple Wrathematics
Like many other young, promising players from outside of the country, Hannes Steinbach made a leap of faith this season by coming to college basketball. It was a well-informed leap that he wasn’t taking alone, as the loosened restrictions of college sports past rendered players of Steinbach’s past employment and skill to play in leagues they would have been declared ineligible for before. Instead, like Egor Demin and Kasparas Jakucionis last year and David Mirkovic plus many others this year, Steinbach is bringing his pro experience to the NCAA ranks.
Steinbach has long been a prospect who has drawn attention even overseas, given his international play and professional prowess. Heck, there were several draft pundits, me included, who thought that Steinbach had a case to come out in last year’s draft class. Yes, he likely would’ve slipped to the second round, even with the caliber of prospects going in the late first and onward. Still, it is arguably a similar risk to head to college basketball and have a disappointing season in a much more public forum that could erase the mystique of being an international draft prospect.
Before making his way to the shores of the Pacific Northwest, Steinbach was making waves with his play around the world. He played for Germany’s FIBA U18 and U19 teams, announcing his status as a premium draft prospect with his performances the last two summers in Tampere, Finland, and Lausanne, Switzerland. Steinbach was named to the All-Star Five team at the U18 EuroBasket by averaging a double-double and helping Germany win their first U18 EuroBasket title. The following summer, Steinbach led Germany to second place with a banner performance at the FIBA U19 Basketball World Cup, surpassing his averages from the previous summer.
In between, Steinbach played at Würzburg, splitting his time between the junior and senior teams, where he dominated and played solidly. Per Synergy, in 12 games for the junior squad, Steinbach shredded opponents to the tune of 24.9 points per game, a 1.17 assist-to-turnover ratio, 12.0 rebounds per game, and 2.3 blocks per game, all while shooting 66.1% at the rim.
At the junior level, Steinbach’s role was to inflict his wrath upon poor teams in his wake and flex his primary option muscles. For the senior team, however, his role was much more contained. Steinbach ranked just sixth on the team in scoring, averaging just 6.6 rebounds per game, and only swatted 0.9 shots per game.
Whether at the junior or senior level, Steinbach primarily played as a screener, rebounder, and finisher for the team. He was tasked with using his strong frame to carve out space, ward off drivers to the rim, and siphon any pass his way into a bucket. Overall, Steinbach fulfilled that purpose, as his rim efficiency numbers and advanced statistics didn’t vary much between those teams.
By last summer, the portrait of Hannes Steinbach’s game was a multi-layered tapestry of possibilities. He’d played professionally at a high level as an ancillary piece for a team, but had also shown the wrath and prowess to dominate at lower levels. For a Washington Huskies team that was short of big men and top-end potential, the idea of snagging a player like Steinbach, who could have a variety of outcomes, was apparently too exciting to pass up.
So, how has the transition been? Pretty seamless, to say the least. Steinbach has only played four games for the Huskies, but he’s third on the team in scoring, first in rebounding, second in assists, fourth in steals, and second in blocks, all while ranking just fourth in usage rate on the team. To put it plainly, Steinbach has had his hands in everything on both ends for Washington.
His early role for the Huskies has been manning the middle for the team in Danny Sprinkle’s guard-focused offense. The backcourt quintet of Desmond Claude, Wesley Yates III, Zoom Diallo, Quimari Peterson, and JJ Mandaquit steers the team’s offense, but Steinbach plays a crucial role as the screener, play finisher, and glass cleaner. On defense, although Lathan Sommerville, Frank Kepnang, and Bryson Tucker offer length to insulate the rim, Steinbach has been the primary rim anchor for the team.
Several of Steinbach’s advanced metrics, albeit in only four games against some variable competition, have popped alongside his tape. His 18.7% offensive rebounding percentage and 24.3% defensive rebounding percentage speak to how dominant Steinbach has been on the glass early for the Huskies. In comparison, his 5.2% block percentage is an excellent indicator of his defensive acumen. That, alongside his solid efficiency numbers, speaks to Steinbach’s thunderous landing into the college basketball scene.
Thus, instead of either starring as an offensive fulcrum or fitting into a well-established team concept, Hannes Steinbach has bridged the role gap and found an entirely new career path. His scoring is both crucial and not focal, while the rest of his game is more necessary than additive to a finished product. In this way, Steinbach is invaluable for the Huskies without needing the ball in his hands to make his wrath felt on the court.
The Path of Wrath
The strongest part of Steinbach’s game from an NBA perspective is his interior defense. While he may not have the outlandish measurables that teams crave in a starting center, he is still a big-bodied pivot who doesn’t get pushed around easily and is light on his feet. Add on his great reflexes and polished technique, and you have a center who could play NBA minutes today.
It doesn’t matter where the rim attempt is coming from for Steinbach: it could be a straight line drive where he helps from the weakside, an all-out attack in his face, or a recovery block when he’s forced to go out on the perimeter. Any and all shots are in danger of being swatted wrathfully by Steinbach if they enter the paint. His block against Caden Powell was the exact wrathful sort that makes Steinbach a feared anchor.
I’m also moved by Steinbach’s athleticism out on the perimeter, even though he’s too slow-footed to consistently match up with wings and guards. Instead, Steinbach can switch in pinches, staying in front of players who are quicker and using his length and smarts to still get some highlight-reel blocks like his swatted three-pointer against Washington State.
Steinbach’s interior expertise extends to his cleaning of the glass, too. He will rarely out-leap a player on either end, but he has a real nose for where a carom will spring. That helps him to get good positioning on the defensive end, where he’s more than comfortable pushing the pace, or on the offensive end, where he can use a solid second jump to keep possession alive for Washington.
Steinbach has already put back 60% of his second chances, per Synergy, though I would like a few of those just to be him sticking the first lay-up. I won’t complain about his offensive rebounding talent getting more reps, but there are a few touch concerns for Steinbach as a finisher. I’ll dive into those later with his overall finishing, but it’s not a big enough red flag for me to ding him, especially in just a four-game sample.
Outside of putbacks, I’ve mostly liked what I’ve seen early from Steinbach as a finisher. The touch issue has been a bit surprising, as he will either not go up strong enough or short-arm some lay-ups, but they aren’t prevalent enough in all of his rim attempts to be even an orange flag. Instead, I’ve enjoyed seeing the creativity and various ways that he can make an impact at the basket.
In the best way possible, Hannes Steinbach is a balanced bulldozer when rolling to the rim off of a cut or pass. He is a big human who moves like a man half his size, which speaks to his light feet and body control on the move. This comes out in his snaking around defenders, leaning layups from odd angles, or taking a bump mid-Eurostep on the way to an and-one against Baylor.
These same balance boons from his light feet and contorting finishes show up when he’s attacking in transition. Typical rim-running big men are undoubtedly capable of gliding down the floor, but Steinbach does so with more control than most players his size. He looks more like a wing with the way that he gets up and down the court, making him a dangerous weapon with or without the ball in his hands on the break.
The next frontier for Steinbach to explore at Washington will be driving the basketball off short rolls and perimeter touches. He’s already shown some of the same creation flashes that made him a star at lower levels, but his cold, wrathful focus on his drives has also shown up for the Huskies. With how much emphasis is shown on guards in Washington’s system, I’m looking forward to seeing how Steinbach can attack bent defenses as a driver.
With his calculated finishes, aggressive swats, and lithe balance, Hannes Steinbach has a clearly strong foundation as a basketball player. The same traits that he showed for Würzburg last year that got him on my 2025 NBA Draft board are why he’s featured on my 2026 board. This time, however, his highs have been higher, and his areas of growth, where he can add some wrath to his game, look to be more promising after a year of development.
Wrath Hath No Fury?
After watching some of Steinbach’s film, you may not be sure that “wrath” is the best descriptor. In fact, you might be wondering if I was just reaching for a bad pun.
To that I say, false! Wrath might be thought of as an all-encompassing and obvious anger, but Steinbach is no friend to opponents or rims around. He’s a cold killer on his finishes and blocks, which makes him an appealing draft prospect as a young center.
That doesn’t mean there aren’t a few places where I would like to see him get a bit meaner, however. One of those areas is shooting, which admittedly isn’t the primary focus of any scouting report for Steinbach. If an NBA team is dead set on landing a stretch five, other prospects fit that mold better than Steinbach.
Instead, his shooting will always be an additive element of his game that will take it to another level. He’s never been shy about taking three-pointers, but always shows a shrewdness not to bomb away inefficiently. I note inefficiency, as Steinbach is a developing shooter, but not in a way that requires significant improvement or time. In fact, I think more reps would actually benefit him.
Last year, for Würzburg, Hannes Steinbach took 26 threes at the senior level and 54 at the junior level, along with a singular long bomb at the FIBA U18 EuroBasket and nine at the FIBA U19 World Cup. Add on the three that Steinbach has taken for Washington, and, with a grand total of 29 makes on 93 attempts, or 31.2%, Steinbach right now isn’t a stretch threat for opponents…yet.
I say yet because, on tape, the form and release are all positives that Steinbach has shown in spades. He has a high release point, gets into his shot quickly, and can do so off the catch with ease. A 93 three-pointer sample is hardly half of a sniper prospect’s season these days, which makes me encouraged to see if the flashes are real for Steinbach as a potential future shooter.
Even if he didn’t develop as a shooter, Steinbach brings a ton of offensive value. If he could shoot, however, the ceiling for what he could be is much higher. His lack of attempts has been a direct result of his role at all levels, as he’s much more focused on bruising in the middle than bombing from deep. I do hope that Danny Sprinkle will let him take a few more tries from deep, as he did for Great Osobor last season.
If there’s a small place where I’d love to see Steinbach show his wrath more, it’s in his screening. Part of my issues stems from the types of screens that Steinbach is setting, as he’s supposed to release early to set up certain plays, but I wish that he would use his body a bit more to contact opposing players. His bearish ballerina build would allow him to flatten small guards while still releasing quickly enough to do damage on his way to the basket.
The larger place outside of his screening that I’d like to see Steinbach show his wrath comes in his playmaking. Again, as it was with shooting, this has not been an area where Steinbach has been leaned on to drive a team. He’s not had the ball in his hands at the top of the key directing the offense, but there are still some places where he could inflict more pain upon the defense when making plays for others.
There isn’t one place where Steinbach usually turns the ball over, but the same is true for his passing. He isn’t heavily featured on short roll plays for the Huskies, outside of beating the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff’s zone. Instead, he has made most of his most memorable passes this season after offensive rebounds.
While there’s nothing wrong with that, especially when he’s shown a clear ability to play a role as an interior-focused player, it would represent the next place that Hannes Steinbach could grow his game to reach a higher ceiling. With improvements to his passing and shooting, the sky would really be the limit for how much wrath he could inflict as a potential star big man.
The Heavy Weight of Wrath
As a player, Hannes Steinbach is both even-keeled and wrathful. He’s never sped up by the opposition, which lets him stay balanced and serene, but his attacks to the rim, blocks against his opponents, and overall impact are full of forceful violence. Just because the violence comes quietly doesn’t mean it isn’t felt by everyone who bounces off his drives or watches their shots sail in the opposite direction of the rim.
Right now, Steinbach is both good enough as a prospect to warrant minutes at the pro level and has clear areas for growth. If he can’t develop as a finisher, shooter, or passer, then his role will be pretty clear at the NBA level. He’ll be tasked with clearing out the paint on both ends, which he’s already shown a wrathful adeptness at doing on multiple levels.
If, however, he can start to polish elements of his offensive game, then Steinbach becomes both a high-floor and high-ceiling prospect. Steinbach will only be 20 in his rookie season, leaving him with plenty of room to grow and develop in an NBA weight room. Having already proved that he can play with grown men in Germany, the concerns around any immediate impact at the next level are also nullified in my book.
That leaves Hannes Steinbach as a fast-rising prospect on my 2026 NBA Draft board. There are other talented big men in this draft class, including other freshmen, but few have the same pedigree and resume that Steinbach already has. When combined with the wrath he’s put on tape, it seems like a matter of time before Steinbach ends up in lottery conversations and stays there for the rest of the season.
I heard one broadcaster comparing Steinbach’s hand size to Kawhi. Is that true?