Charlotte Hornets NBA Draft Prospect Profile: Hannes Steinbach

No team in the league allocated less capital to the center position in 2026 than the Charlotte Hornets.

Much like his protege Joe Mazzulla, Charles Lee was comfortable with going to battle with an group of big men that lacked a foundational star, but instead impacted games with differing, complimentary skills.

In order for the Hornets to take a leap in 2027, they'll need to find a big man that can impact the game on the offensive end of the floor in a different way than Moussa Diabate and Ryan Kalkbrenner did last season. Be it a power forward or a center, Charlotte needs a player that can impose their will in the paint when the team's three-point heavy attack gets stymied.

The majority of the bigs in Charlotte's draft range like Aday Mara, Morez Johnson Jr., and Jayden Quaintance are defense-first players (who the Hornets should still take a long look at), but there is a talented center who profiles as the type of interior offensive hub that they currently lack.

Scouting Hannes Steinbach

Steinbach is a 6'10.25" center with a massive 7'2.5" wingspan who played one year of college hoops at the University of Washington.

The biggest questions about Steinbach revolve around his frame that is a bit undersized for a center. Draftballr.com has procured the measurements of 180 centers that have taken part in recent NBA combines, and Steinbach sizes up to the 57th percentile in height, 31st percentile in wingspan, and a disappointing 19th percentile in standing reach.

The big man moves his feet well on defense and has shockingly fluid hips for a player his size, allowing him to effectively mirror guards and wings driving from the perimeter, but Steinbach's size will always limit his effectiveness at protecting the rim on defense.

I clocked a few times that Steinbach weaponized his plus wingspan on rear view contests both in college and with Germany in last summer's FIBA U19 World Cup, but those are severely outnumbered by instances where Steinbach completely failed to impact a driver attacking the basket when he was patrolling the paint.

@SheedinATL on X found that Steinbach's best historical comparison in terms of just his measurements is former NBA big man Greg Monroe. In Monroe's first seven seasons in the NBA, opponent's rim frequency increased when he was on the floor in every year but one -- that is bad news for Steinbach's potential influence on shots at the cup when he reaches the pros.

I do think there is a world where Steinbach could play power forward for stretches at the next level, but that is going to take a major leap in the shooting department for the 20-year-old big.

Steinbach connected on 34% of his three-point shots in his lone college season on just 2.9 attempts per 100 possessions. However, he made 75.9% of his free throws and shot 44.8% on mid-range looks, so there are some positive touch indicators in his profile that point to a potential increase in three-point acumen.

His offensive game is a bit old school right now. Washington often threw the ball to Steinbach in the post and allowed him to cook, and his combination of strength and fancy footwork led to a ton of buckets in the Big Ten. He needs to continue to add mass to his frame to overcome some of his struggles with playing through contact, and he could also take some classes at the Kon Knueppel school of playing off of two feet in the paint to mitigate some of deficiencies as a two-point scorer.

He only averaged 1.6 assists per game as a freshman, but Steinbach is a good passer who can already manipulate defenses with his eyes and take advantage of an out-of-position defender. Steinbach often slipped into the short roll in Washington's offensive scheme and he displayed comfort both driving for

The man selling point for Steinbach as a prospect is his dominance on the glass.

He boasted a ridiculous 14.3% offensive rebound rate (95th percentile) along with a 25% defensive rebound rate (74th percentile), and the tape matches the numbers. Steinbach has vacuum cleaners for hands that gobble up rebounds on both ends of the floor. He boasts great feel as a rebounder with a hot-running motor to match that combine to make him a true impact player in the possession game, something that Charles Lee and Jeff Peterson clearly covet.

Analyzing Steinbach's Fit in Charlotte

If Steinbach develops into a threat from three-point range, he'd be an awesome fit in Charlotte.

In that scenario, I believe he could share the floor with either Moussa Diabate or Ryan Kalkbrenner and give the Hornets the inside-out scoring option that they lacked down the home stretch of the 2025-26 season.

Even if he doesn't shoot it, Steinbach would represent a different archetype of big man that Charlotte doesn't currently employ. His combination of footwork, post acumen, soft hands, and potential passing upside is Isaiah Hartenstein-like, and that specific set of skills could really accentuate the Hornets' perimeter talent on the offensive end of the floor.

If Steinbach needs to be accounted for in the paint, Charlotte will have a field day by surrounding him with knock down shooters on the perimeter.

The Hornets need both size and skill in their front court, and Hannes Steinbach brings both to the table. His long-term upside will always be limited by his measurables and defined by his ability as a shooter, but there are enough translatable skills for me to think he'll be high on Charlotte's board when they are on the clock with the 14th overall pick.

Drafting Steinbach won't necessarily bring an end to the Kalkbrenner or Diabate era in Charlotte, but it will give Charles Lee another pitch in his front court arsenal that Charlotte is clearly trying to 'Moneyball' together.

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