St. John’s roster is now complete, and the latest addition continued the trend of Rick Pitino adding experienced players from overseas.
The Johnnies landed 6-foot-10 Hungarian sharpshooting big man Zsombor Maronka.
His addition comes in the wake of Syracuse transfer Donnie Freeman being lost for next season due to a torn Achilles tendon suffered during offseason workouts, prompting the search for another forward.
The 23-year-old Maronka spent last season with the Hamburg Towers of the Basketball Bundesliga, averaging 7.8 points and 4.4 rebounds while shooting 36.8 percent from 3-point range on 4.3 attempts over 27 games in Germany’s top pro league.
He also appeared in 13 EuroCup contests with Hamburg and produced averages of 5.6 points and 3.2 rebounds.
He has experience with the Hungarian senior national team as well.
In four games in the 2027 FIBA World Cup qualifiers, he averaged 10.5 points and 3.5 rebounds.
“Z is a knockdown shooter and terrific passer,” Pitino said. “At 6-10, he brings great length to our team.”
Maronka is the fifth international prospect St. John’s has added this offseason.
He joins Quinn Ellis of England, Babacar Sane of Senegal, Djordije Jovanovic of Montenegro and Lazar Stojkovic of Serbia.
The expectation is that the experienced Maronka will provide depth up front at multiple positions and complement slashers Sane, Ellis and top Baylor transfer Tounde Yessoufou.
He previously played with projected starting center Ruben Prey when the two were in Spain three years ago, as teammates for CB Prat.
