Felipe Minzer bursts onto the college basketball radar at the NCAA College Basketball Academy

Felipe Minzer had a lot of hype surrounding himself when he showed up at the NCAA College Basketball Academy. Minzer is a 6-foot-6 lead guard who is originally from Argentina. He currently plays the Zaragoza Club in the Spanish u19 League. Last season, Minzer, who is still 16 years old, averaged 9.3 points 5.7 rebounds, 3.0 assists, and 1.7 steals while shooting 47.5 percent from the field.

“I’m a player who tries to know what the team needs for me to do to win,” Minzer told On3. “I can attack the basket and play hard on defense and on offense.”

While he has been building an international reputation over the past couple of seasons, Minzer used this summer’s FIBA u17 and U18 World Cup Games to boost his reputation across the entire basketball landscape. Playing with his home Argentina side, Minzer averaged 17.4 points, 7.1 rebounds, 4.6 assists, and 3.0 steals during the u17 World Cup.

A few weeks earlier, with the u18 Argentinian team, Minzer averaged 15.2 points, 10.4 rebounds, 2.4 assists, and 2.7 steals per game. For the two events combined, he shot 50.4 percent from the field and 35.9 percent from three.

“I played well in both tournaments,” Minzer said. “I learned a lot about myself and I developed myself with each game I played. I’m comfortable with how my team played and how we did.”

Felipe Minzer talks college vs. pro

Minzer is currently playing in the developmental program of the Spanish professional club Zaragoza. He attended the 2024 NCAA College Basketball Academy. Programs like Kentucky, Louisville, Virginia, Alabama, Michigan, and many others sat courtside throughout the week to watch Minzer.

Minzer talked about his impending college versus professional decision.

“I’m comfortable in Europe right now,” Minzer said. “I want to finish this season and think about the future then. I would like to come over here to play, but both are good decisions.

“My agent tells me that I have a lot of interest from colleges,” Minzer said. “But they talk to my agent and not to me. At the end of this season, we are going to talk about that.”

Minzer scouting report

It is the feel for the game that pops with Felipe Minzer. The 6-foot-6 lefty plays with an excellent pace and while he might not be the most explosively athletic player, he gets to every spot in the half-court he wants. Minzer plays with great balance and he is capable of making multiple reads off a live dribble in traffic or in the open floor. Defensively, he has excellent instincts. While he is not the quickest guarding on an island, his understanding of angles and footwork puts him in a position against most opponents. He is good off the ball, making reads when defending in a freelance-type position. He will need to continue developing the jump shot to make it a more consistent threat. Given his young age, Minzer is a good area rebounder and a quick processor, and he does not force plays to take care of positions. He has a unique way of dominating a game, but doing so in a quiet team-based manner.