The Friars are once again tapping into Europe. Last month the Friars landed G/F Stefan Vaaks from Estonia and it’s being reported they are bringing in another import. It’s being reported by Kevin McNamara and Kevin Stacom that 7-1 Latvian big man Peteris Pinnis will be the Friars latest member.
Pinnis, who turns 21 in August, competed for VEF Rega in the Estonian Latvian Basketball League, the same league where Stefan Vaaks plays. This past season he averaged 7.9 ppg and 6.1 peg, while shooting 54% from the floor. He doesn’t offer much from a rim protection standpoint but he is a guy who can rebound pretty well and use his height and strength to his advantage on offense. This past season he came off the bench for Rega. One would have to imagine that he plays a similar type role for the Friars. PC has only Cole Hargrove backing up their bigs Oswin Erhunmwunse and Duncan Powell. With the addition of Pinnis the Friars do fill a hole in terms of frontcourt depth. It remains to be seen how much of an impact he can have with PC but he seems like a nice find as a depth piece.
Latvia has become a pretty good nation for basketball, with Celtics center Kristaps Porzingis leading the way. Pinnis plays with Dairis Bertans on VEF Rega, brother of NBA journeyman David Bertans.. In the 2024 U20 EuroBasket competition (B division) Pinnis averaged nearly a double-double for his nation with 9.6 ppg and 10.3 rpg. Considering he plays professionally against grown men at the very least Pinnis should be able to help Oswin in practice and hopefully can crack the rotation.
It seems to be a wise add for Kim English and staff to take a flyer on a big from overseas.
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