Huskies' Steinbach Solid Once More in World Cup Win Over Canada

Originally posted on Washington Huskies on SI
By Dan Raley | Last updated Jul 1, 2025 2:09 PM ET

Hannes Steinbach, continuing to do his best Dirk Nowitzki impersonation, turned in his third consecutive strong basketball outing for Germany in the FIBA U19 World Cup in Lausanne, Switzerland.

In a 104-88 victory over Canada on Tuesday, the 6-foot-9 incoming University of Washington freshman came up with 19 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 blocked shots in a game that was never close.

A steadily improving player in nearly every category, Steinbach connected on 8 of 11 shots, including 2 of 3 from 3-point range.

Before everything began, Steinbach had told in a FIBA magazine article how his family members were good friends with Nowitzki, widely considered Germany's greatest basketball player and retired from the NBA's Dallas Mavericks. Nowitzki has been in Lausanne over the past few days, watching the games unfold.

Hannes Steinbach has looked like a top 5 player in the FIBA U19 World Cup. The 6’9 Washington commit has another great performance, this time in the win over Canada

19 points
7 boards
3 assists
2 blocks
8-11 FG
2-3 3P
1-2 FT

Rising up boards for the 2026 NBA draft pic.twitter.com/LKPHanAItu
— nbadraftpoint (@nbadraftpoint) July 1, 2025

Steinbach is beginning to draw a lot of attention to himself. Before ever playing a minute of college basketball, he has turned up on multiple NBA mock drafts in recent weeks, making him the highest rated Husky.

"There's a reason he's 25th in the mock draft -- like people know about him," UW coach Danny Sprinkle said.

Counting decisive wins over Slovenia and China, Steinbach has scored 50 points and grabbed 33 rebounds in three World Cup outings.

For the tournament, he's dropped in 22 of 29 shots, a blistering 75.8 percent. His 3-point shots against Canada were his first of the event.

Steinbach could be on a path to face the United States team and an eventual Husky teammate in JJ Mandaquit, a freshman point guard from Hawaii who has drawn several plaudits at the World Cup, as well.

Sprinkle said he hopes to see Steinbach in Montlake sometime later this month. The FIBA competition lasts through the weekend.

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This article first appeared on Washington Huskies on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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