Magic's Paolo Banchero: Comes close to triple-double again
Rotowire
Banchero produced 19 points (6-15 FG, 0-2 3Pt, 7-9 FT), 10 rebounds, eight assists and one steal in 34 minutes during Saturday's 129-101 loss to the Nets.
Banchero was one of the few bright spots offensively in a 28-point loss for the Magic, as he finished just two assists away from recording a triple-double. That has been the case in each of Orlando's last two games, and while he has been operating as the Magic's second offensive threat behind the red-hot Franz Wagner, he's finding ways to make an impact in other areas. Through his last five outings, Banchero is averaging 19.8 points, 8.2 rebounds and 6.4 assists per game.
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Magic's Paolo Banchero: Sniffs triple-double in win
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Banchero chipped in 28 points (11-20 FG, 3-4 3Pt, 3-3 FT), 13 rebounds and seven assists across 38 minutes during Friday's 130-125 victory over the Wizards.
Banchero was efficient from the field, and even though Franz Wagner (31 points) led the team in scoring, Banchero made his presence felt on both ends of the court, finishing three assists away from a triple-double. Perhaps more importantly, Banchero looked completely healthy after suffering an ankle injury Wednesday against Washington. Banchero is averaging 20.1 points, 6.5 rebounds and 4.1 assists per game over his last 10 contests.
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Magic's Paolo Banchero: Cleared to play
Rotowire
Banchero (ankle) is available for Friday's game against Washington.
As expected, Banchero has been upgraded from probable to available and will play Friday despite spraining his ankle during the third quarter of Wednesday's win over Washington. Despite a poor showing last time out, Banchero has been solid in Year 2, averaging 19.1 points, 6.3 rebounds, 4.6 assists and 1.1 steals in 33.2 minutes.
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Magic's Paolo Banchero: Likely to play Friday
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Banchero (ankle) is probable for Friday's game against the Wizards.
Banchero turned his right ankle in the third quarter of Wednesday's win over Washington and has been diagnosed with a sprain. However, he'll likely be able to suit up in the first half of a back-to-back set Friday. He was limited to six points in 27 minutes during Wednesday's matchup but had topped 20 points in his previous five appearances.
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Magic's Paolo Banchero: Hurts ankle Wednesday
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Magic head coach Jamahl Mosley said after Wednesday's 139-120 win over the Wizards that Banchero turned his right ankle in the third quarter of the contest and will be evaluated moving forward, Jason Beede of the Orlando Sentinel reports.
Banchero was in the midst of a down night before tweaking the ankle, as he provided just six points (2-8 FG, 2-3 FT), four rebounds and four assists while turning the ball over four times in 27 minutes before sitting out the final quarter. Though Mosley didn't suggest that Banchero's injury is a major concern, the second-year big man could be at risk of missing his first game of the season when the Magic return to action Friday for a rematch with the Wizards.
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Magic's Paolo Banchero: Flirts with triple-double
Rotowire
Banchero closed with 23 points (9-18 FG, 2-5 3Pt, 3-6 FT), seven rebounds, eight assists and two steals in 37 minutes during Sunday's 130-117 victory over the Hornets.
The Magic have won seven straight games, and Banchero has been hot with averages of 21.1 points, 6.0 rebounds, 3.9 assists, 1.0 blocks and 1.7 three-pointers in that stretch. His fantasy managers will be happy with his production apart from his free-throw percentage, as he's now shooting 65.1 percent from the charity stripe this season on 6.2 attempts per game.
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Magic's Paolo Banchero: Goes for 23 points in win
Rotowire
Banchero notched 23 points (10-16 FG, 2-6 3Pt, 1-2 FT), seven rebounds and five assists over 35 minutes during Friday's 113-96 victory over Boston.
Banchero stepped his game up when the Magic needed him the most, and the second-year forward was one of the main reasons why Orlando pulled the upset against Boston. Banchero has been instrumental for the Magic of late, averaging 20.8 points, 5.8 rebounds and 3.2 assists per game during the team's ongoing six-game winning run.
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Magic's Paolo Banchero: Pops for 23 in win
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Banchero notched 23 points (8-14 FG, 4-5 3Pt, 3-5 FT), three rebounds, four assists, three blocks and one steal over 35 minutes during Wednesday's 124-119 win over the Nuggets.
The 21-year-old forward has scored at least 23 points in three straight games as he looks to improve on last season's Rookie of the Year performance. Banchero's shooting has taken a big step forward in 2023-24, especially from three-point range, and he's drained 51.4 percent of his attempts from long range in November after shooting just 29.8 percent from beyond the arc last year. That's led to 21.9 points a game on the month, and he may just be scratching the surface of his offensive upside.
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Magic's Paolo Banchero: Leading scorer in victory
Rotowire
Banchero totaled 24 points (9-14 FG, 6-7 FT), three rebounds, two blocks and one steal over 27 minutes during Sunday's 128-116 win over the Pacers.
Banchero provided an offensive spark for Orlando in a road victory, leading all players in Sunday's game in scoring while leading all Magic players in shots made to go along with a pair of blocks on the defensive end. Banchero has tallied 20 or more points in five games this season, including in two of his last five outings.
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Magic's Paolo Banchero: Scores 13 with eight boards
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Banchero accumulated 13 points (6-14 FG, 0-1 3Pt, 1-4 FT), eight rebounds, four assists and one block across 32 minutes during Friday's 103-97 victory over the Bulls.
Banchero didn't have his best shooting performance and failed to reach the 20-point mark for the third straight contest. The second-year forward has hit that threshold just four times this season, and while it's still early in the campaign, his numbers are slightly down compared to his impressive rookie year. Despite that, he's been excellent for Orlando and should remain valuable across all formats due to his impressive play on both ends of the court.
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Magic's Paolo Banchero: Feasts in win
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Banchero logged 26 points (10-22 FG, 2-5 3Pt, 4-5 FT), 12 rebounds, five assists and one steal in 38 minutes during Saturday's 112-97 win over the Bucks.
Banchero led Orlando with 26 points but formed a quality trio with Franz Wagner (24 points) and Jalen Suggs (20 points) to account for the majority of the Magic's offense. The 21-year-old is booming over his last five games, averaging 24.0 points, 8.2 rebounds and 6.0 assists on stellar 52.4/40.0/75.7 percent shooting.
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Magic's Paolo Banchero: Comes close to double-double
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Banchero recorded 17 points (7-14 FG, 1-3 3Pt, 2-4 FT), eight rebounds, four assists and one steal in 34 minutes during Thursday's 120-119 loss to the Hawks.
Banchero ended just two rebounds away from recording a double-double, a feat he's accomplished only once this season, though he's yet to grab 10 or more rebounds in 2023-24. Banchero endured a slow start but seems to be trending in the right direction of late, averaging 23.5 points, 7.3 rebounds and 6.3 assists per game over his last four contests.
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Magic's Paolo Banchero: Scores team-high 22 points
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Banchero had 22 points (8-18 FG, 0-1 3Pt, 6-6 FT), five rebounds and six assists across 37 minutes during Monday's 117-102 loss to the Mavericks.
Banchero notched at least five assists for the third consecutive game, and he's on pace to exceed the 3.7 assists per game he averaged as a rookie. Banchero posted 2-of-8 shooting in the second half Monday, making improved crunch-time scoring an important component of his evolution.
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Magic's Paolo Banchero: Versatility prevails
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Banchero notched 25 points (9-15 FG, 2-4 3Pt, 5-7 FT), seven rebounds, 10 assists, one block and one steal across 34 minutes during Saturday's 120-101 victory over the Lakers. He also had four turnovers.
Logging the first double-digit assist performance of his career, Banchero's well-rounded impact is an early season trend. He's notched at least four assists in all six of Orlando's contests thus far while booming for 55 points, 16 rebounds, 15 assists, four steals and three blocks across his last two games.
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Magic's Paolo Banchero: Explodes for 30 points
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Banchero finished with 30 points (9-13 FG, 1-2 3Pt, 11-15 FT), nine rebounds, five assists, two blocks and three steals across 36 minutes during Thursday's 115-113 win over the Jazz.
Banchero averaged 20.0 points per game as a rookie but finally reached that tally in this game, and in a big way, as his contributions carried the Magic to a tight win on the road. Without being downright bad, Banchero was enduring a slow start to the season, but this game might be what he needs to snap his low-scoring skid. He's now averaging 16.0 points per game while shooting 44.8 percent from the field through his first five games.
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Magic's Paolo Banchero: Leads team with 15 points
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Banchero had 15 points (5-13 FG, 1-3 3Pt, 4-8 FT), four rebounds, four assists and four steals across 32 minutes during Tuesday's 118-102 loss to the Clippers.
Banchero's production has been steady, but a breakout game has been elusive through four games. Still, the Duke product set a new season high in points and steals and has provided good secondary numbers in the early going.
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Magic's Paolo Banchero: Healthy for start of camp
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Banchero (illness) is healthy for the start of training camp, Philip Rossman-Reich of OrlandoMagicDaily.com reports.
Banchero dealt with an illness to close out the FIBA World Cup in September, but he's back to full health as the Magic prepare for camp. The 20-year-old made 72 appearances for Orlando as a rookie last year and averaged 20.0 points, 6.9 rebounds and 3.7 assists in 33.8 minutes per game.
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Magic's Paolo Banchero: Sidelined for World Cup finale
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Banchero didn't play Sunday for Team USA during the FIBA World Cup third-place game against Canada due to an illness, Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com reports.
Brandon Ingram missed the semifinal matchup versus Germany on Friday due to the same issue, and it appears he passed it to Banchero and Jaren Jackson, who were both sidelined Sunday. All three players should be good to go for their respective training camps in October, but it was certainly a disheartening way to end a disappointing tournament for Team USA.
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Magic's Paolo Banchero: Ruled out Sunday
Rotowire
Banchero (back) will not play Sunday against Miami.
The Rookie of the Year favorite will miss a third straight game to conclude the season as the Magic jockey for lottery positioning and look to get increased run for some other young players. Banchero will finish the year with averages of 20.0 points, 6.9 rebounds, 3.7 assists and 1.2 threes per contest in 72 games.
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Magic's Paolo Banchero: Officially out
Rotowire
Banchero (back) has been ruled out for Friday's game against the Nets.
After some confusion with Orlando's injury report, Banchero will officially miss both halves of the Magic's current back-to-back set. The rookie's final chance to suit up this season will come Sunday in Miami, but the frontrunner for Rookie of the Year will likely sit out that contest as well.
