Remember when Duke star Paolo Banchero was waiting for the NBA Draft in 2022, and there were a lot of people who expected Auburn’s Jabari Smith to go first?
Didn’t happen.
Smith actually fell to third as Orlando surprised many, including Banchero to an extent, by taking him #1 (Chet Holmgren went #2 to OKC).
Banchero rapidly proved Orlando’s judgment was correct, winning Rookie of the Year in 2023 and being named an All-Star in 2024.
He’s widely seen as a rising star and just two weeks ago, he signed a massive extension with the Magic for as much as $287 million.
Now that he’s established though, just how good is Banchero?
On a recent episode of the Jeff Teague’s podcast, they had a discussion which got pretty interesting.
Co-host Bishop B. Henn said “that’s the best player in the East right now.”
Teague disagreed, saying it was still Giannis Antetokounmpo, but he agreed that Banchero was moving up: “I ain’t gonna say that, but he cold.”
Generally speaking, we don’t like to argue with people who have coached or competed t the highest level, so we’ll just say this: Banchero might not be better than Giannis right now, but he’s just 22. He’s built a massive reputation in just three short seasons. If he’s not the best player now, he’s got a great shot at getting there soon.