Manek was born and raised in Edmond, Oklahoma and started playing basketball from a young age against older competition.

[5] Rated either a three-star and four-star recruit by several services, he committed to play college basketball for Oklahoma after his sophomore season of high school.

He took advantage of the extra year of NCAA eligibility granted in response to the COVID-19 pandemic to play in Chapel Hill.

After being used primarily as the sixth man for the first part of the season, Manek was inserted to the starting lineup following an injury to Dawson Garcia.

Manek's elevation to the starting five coincided with a turnaround in the Tar Heels' fortunes, as the team was able to play their way to a tie for second place in the ACC regular season standings and the third seed in the conference's tournament.

[18] On July 21, 2023, Manek signed a two-year (1+1) deal with Žalgiris Kaunas of the Lithuanian Basketball League (LKL) and the EuroLeague.

[20] Manek's older brother, Kellen, was his basketball teammate at Harrah High School for three years and played for Oral Roberts and Southeastern Oklahoma State.