Martin Breunig

LOI to UW

Martin Breunig – 6’9″, 205, SF, Leverkusen, Ger (SJNMA, Wi)

Martin Breunig of St. John’s NW Millitary Academy is somewhat new on the recruiting scene because he was in Europe all summer playing for his native Germany’s U18 squad.  If you managed to see any FIBA ball this summer you might have seen him play,  but what you would have seen is him playing as a PF instead of his preferred wing position.  When he moves to the wing,  he becomes a much more intriguing player due to his size and savvy.

He has an excellent handle,  and he keeps his head up in transition with or without the ball.  Though he lacks physicality and overt speed,  he more than compensates with excellent footwork,  a good vertical game,  soft hands and good balance.  He also has a pretty stroke from midrange to the arc,  as well as a soft touch on passes to and through the post.  To top it off,  Breunig has a knack for being in position for everything coming off the glass.  His feet and size allow him to avoid the box out with great frequency.

He needs to develop other parts of his game.  He needs some work on man defense,  and his help side vision needs to expand.  His shot is good enough at this point that it could be a zone-buster by the time his prep year ends.  He’s also surprisingly inconsistent at the line–surprising because of his nice touch from mid-range.   And he needs to work on receiving and adjusting to contact in the lane instead of relying on up-and-under moves.

All around, Martin is a project at this point.  A year at SJNMA should change that outlook drastically,  and his strengths can be exploited at the high major level as a role player.  If he develops further,  he can be an excellent contributor and even leader on that level.

Update Feb. 7:  New video on Mr. Breunig is now posted.