Last Updated on July 28, 2026 by Mat Diekhake

Joel Soriano is a physical center whose rebounding, rim protection, and interior scoring earned professional opportunities after a productive collegiate career at St. John’s. His paint presence, screen setting, and relentless work on the glass project well as a traditional rim-running frontcourt role player.

Here are the details for Joel Soriano:

Player Profile

  • Full Name: Joel Soriano
  • Nationality: American / Dominican Republic
  • Age: Born January 30, 2000
  • Hometown: Yonkers, New York, USA
  • Height: 6 feet 10 inches (2.08 meters)
  • Weight: 256 pounds (116 kg)
  • Wingspan: 6 feet 11 inches
  • Shoe Size: Not publicly available
  • Number: Wears 11 with the Greensboro Swarm
  • Position: Center
  • High School: Archbishop Stepinac High School in White Plains, New York; also attended St. Thomas More School in Montville, Connecticut
  • College: Fordham University (2019–2021); St. John’s University (2021–2024)
  • NBA Draft: Undrafted in 2024
  • Teams Played For:
    • Greensboro Swarm (2024–present)
  • Championship Rings: 0 (He has not won an NBA Championship)
  • Kids: Information on children is not publicly available
  • Siblings: Information on siblings is not publicly available

Player Archetype / Play Style

Joel Soriano’s player archetype is that of a bruising interior big, a traditional center whose game is built on size, rebounding, paint scoring, and physical control around the rim. Listed by St. John’s at 6-foot-11 and 250 pounds, with pre-draft measurements around a 7-foot-3.5 wingspan, he brings the length and mass to carve out space, finish through contact, and dominate the glass. Defensively, he fits as a drop-coverage rim protector and interior rebound anchor more than a switch-heavy big; offensively, he works as a low-post finisher, screen setter, second-chance scorer, and interior presence rather than a perimeter-oriented creator. His play style is rugged, high-motor, and old-school, leaning on strength, positioning, offensive rebounding, and touch inside, which made him one of the more productive back-to-the-basket centers in college basketball. (St. John’s University Athletics)

Scouting Report

Joel Soriano wins possessions the old-fashioned way. He gets to the paint early, establishes contact before the ball arrives and makes defenders work through his body instead of trying to out-jump or out-quick them. The first thing you notice is how consistently he creates second chances. He doesn’t simply chase offensive rebounds; he reads where shots are likely to come off the rim, wedges his man underneath the basket and keeps the play alive with strong hands rather than tipping the ball aimlessly. In pick-and-rolls, he’s most comfortable setting a solid screen, diving hard down the middle and presenting a reliable target, forcing the low man to choose between protecting the rim or surrendering a dump-off pass. Defensively, his value comes from occupying space. He plays drop coverage with patience, stays square to the ball handler for as long as possible and uses his size to discourage finishes instead of hunting highlight blocks. The trade-off is that quicker offences can expose him if he’s asked to defend repeatedly in space or switch onto dynamic guards, and his offensive game isn’t built around creating from the elbows or stretching the floor with perimeter shooting. That’s why his ideal environment is alongside guards who can consistently turn the corner and wings who provide enough spacing to keep the lane from becoming crowded. To me, there are similarities to Ivica Zubac in the way he anchors the middle through screening, rebounding and interior finishing, while parts of his game also resemble Reggie Evans, particularly the relentless pursuit of missed shots and willingness to do the physical work that frees teammates. It’s easy to focus on the points and rebounds, but I think the more revealing possessions are the ones where Soriano’s first screen creates the advantage, his second effort extends the possession and his positioning quietly forces the opposition to play a little farther from the basket than they intended.

Sources:

St. John’s Athletics — Joel Soriano – Men’s Basketball
NBA Draft — Joel Soriano
St. John’s Athletics — Joel Soriano Named Top-10 Candidate For 2024 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Center Of The Year
Field Level Media — St. John’s, with rebounding machine Joel Soriano, hosts LIU