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270 Spotlight: Nick Muszynski (St. Charles, 2017)

By Zach Fleer, 08/04/16, 12:00PM EDT

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A look at the rising senior center from St. Charles

Continuing our 270 Spotlight series, we take a look at massive 6-foot-10 St. Charles senior center Nick Muszynski. Picking up several Division I offers this summer, Muszynski has narrowed his recruitment down to five schools as he shares that with us and more below. 

With tremendous length and versatility, Muszynski has an intriguing skill set for his size and was Central Ohio's top breakout player last season in the 2017 class. Able to knock down perimeter jumpers, block shots inside, rebound and screen at a high level and be an instant impact player, Muszynski's best basketball is still ahead of him. Let's get to know Muszynski here.

270 Hoops: What is your recruitment like? Who is showing the most interest?

Muszynski: I have narrowed my recruitment down to five schools. Wright State, Air Force, UNC Asheville, Stony Brook, and Belmont. I will be taking official visits to all four out of state schools, and I visited Wright State unofficially in early August.

270 Hoops: Who is the best teammate you've ever played with?

Muszynski: The best teammate I have ever played with is either Johnny Wallace (St. Charles, PG, 2016) or Tommy Schmock (St. Edward, PG, 2017) on OBC. Johnny is the best leader I have ever played with, and has a knack for hitting the big shots. He was the most valuable player on our 22-2 district semi-finalist 2016 St. Charles team. Tommy, who is verbally committed to The University of Findlay, is the definition of a pure point guard. A fantastic ball handler, great perimeter defender, and leader, he has a reliable shot and has great vision of the floor. He controls the game like no other. The fact that he is going to D2 Findlay is a steal for their program. He is a Division 1 caliber player who I'd take first on any team I could play on.

270 Hoops: Toughest player you have ever had to guard?

Muszynski: The toughest player I have ever had to guard is Caden Sanchez (St. Francis DeSales, PF, 2017). Caden and I have been playing with and against each other since the fifth grade, and I have developed an incredible respect for him. Going to school at our archival DeSales, we play twice a year, and with his phenomenal footwork, strength, and craftiness around the basket, it is always a 32 minute (and sometimes more) battle.

270 Hoops: Toughest place to play so far in your career?

Muszynski: DeSales. The only road game that we lost last year, they have a great team that plays in an incredible environment. Their fans are the closest thing I've seen to our very own Cockpit, who is undoubtably the best student section in the state. Between their loyal fans, their unique gym that is both small and hot, the atmosphere is always incredible, especially when we come in.

270 Hoops: Favorite memory up to this point in your career?

Muszynski: St. Charles at Bishop Watterson on Jan. 2 last season. We went in to their place, where we had never won in their new gym, without our second leading scorer, Braden Budd, and our other big man, Zach Donley, with a sprained ankle and he only ended up playing eight minutes. But, we came together as a team, and came together for a great TEAM victory.

270 Hoops: Favorite basketball player?

Muszynski: Tim Duncan. The way he plays based on fundamentals, and how he established such a winning in San Antonio, he is someone I try to model my game and myself (both on and off the court) after.

270 Hoops: What are your biggest strengths on the court?

Muszynski: I think that my ability to use my length (6'10 height and 7'3 wingspan) on the court gives me a huge advantage over my opponents defensively. Also, my ability to score in a variety of ways makes me a tough matchup for teams. I can score back to the basket, shoot the mid range, drive from mid range, and even shoot open threes. I have focused a lot on my perimeter game both offensively and defensively a lot this season, trying to make myself even more versatile.

270 Hoops: What separates you from other players in your class?

Muszynski: My feel for the game. I pride myself in playing very high IQ, unselfish, high efficiency basketball. Because in the long run, the goal of the game is to win, and that will ALWAYS come first to me. Weather the team needs me to try to score 30, or just be a screener and rebounder, I will do to the best of my ability to help the team win.

270 Hoops: Most disappointing moment of your career?

Muszynski: Our district semi final loss to Dublin Coffman. We came in well prepared, until we lost our senior point guard and captain Jonny Wallace on the second play of the game. We then fell behind, but resiliently fought our way to make it one possession game. We had the ball twice down two and three with under a minute to go, and we were unable to convert on offense. I missed a tying mid range jumper down down. Although we can't blame the loss strictly on Johnny's injury, it would have been interesting to see how we stacked up healthy. But, these things happen in sports, and we gave it our all and lost to a phenomenal Coffman team that included Luke Vargo, Seth Fuller, and Noah Gleeson. However, this year we are planning on making it much further than the district semifinal round.

270 Hoops: What is your favorite social media platform?

Muszynski: Twitter. It is a great place where people can express their thoughts and also learn about lots of new topics that they may not be familiar with

270 Hoops: Favorite TV show growing up?

Muszynski: One Tree Hill. I loved it because it was so relatable on how the high school kids in the show handled school, basketball, social life and family life, while also having to plan for the future and life after high school.

270 Hoops: Who is your biggest role model or hero?

Muszynski: My role model is Steve Jobs. Steve was a genius who was doubted, turned away, despised, and constantly targeted. But although Steve had his problems, just like everyone else, he fought to get the company that had been taken from him, the company that he had started from nothing, back from the people that doubted him. Steve proved everyone wrong in the end, even if his end came sooner than everyone expected.

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