Markelle Fultz is the perfect point guard for Paolo Banchero

Markelle Fultz’s return last season from his ACL injury itself was a huge victory for the Orlando Magic. It did not matter how he played. Quite frankly, history would tell us that players typically struggle the first year back from that sort of injury.

However, Markelle Fultz looked like he had little to no rust. Or maybe he did, which would mean a “rusty” Markelle Fultz played really well.

In the end, Fultz made everyone on the team better. In his minutes on the court, the Magic had a -5.3 net rating, trailing only Wendell Carter and Franz Wagner among rotation players. The Magic wanted more of him even as they kept their caution as he recovered.

Now it feels like the Magic are ready to unleash Fultz. And everyone is eager to see how he will unlock the rest of the team. Especially after his first fully healthy full offseason in his career.

The Orlando Magic have plenty to be excited about this upcoming season with the addition of the Number 1 overall pick in Paolo Banchero and Markelle Fultz’s first full season after tearing his ACL, with the hopeful return of Jonathan Isaac as well.

The Magic are bringing back much of the same roster. The addition of Paolo Banchero only adds to the excitement as the team begins to learn how to use their versatile top overall pick.

The combination of Fultz and Banchero should be like a lock and key. It will be seamless. And the potential only adds to the anticipation for the 2023 season and beyond.

The Magic are the only team in the last 10 years that have ranked bottom 10 in offensive efficiency every single season. Fultz’s elite playmaking and Banchero’s elite scoring ability Banchero can only help the Magic overcome that.

The two should be able to set each other up and unlock this long-dormant Magic offense. The combination of the two could very well take the Magic to another level. That is what Fultz did when he returned to the lineup, even playing with the team’s bench lineup.

Last season when Fultz returned, the Magic’s season was all but over.

The team had a very poor record and shifted its focus to experimenting with new guys and lineups. They also began resting their best players in order to avoid any further injuries to an already injury-riddled team.

Fultz was often playing with guys who normally were not on NBA rosters as the Magic brought him off the bench and limited his minutes to about 20 per game.

Despite those limitations, he found a way to play very well. He found guys on cuts and on weakside threes very effortlessly.

Markelle Fultz was fifth in the NBA in the percent of team’s assists at 50.3-percent. He only trailed Chris Paul (55.7-percent), Trae Young (53.4-percent), Luka Doncic (52.4-percent) and James Harden (51.4-percent) in that category.

That is some seriously elite star-studded company to be in. That just shows how much Fultz just simply had the team organized and contributed to the team’s overall ball movement.

That is shown too on how he connected with other players and helped them improve.

Mo Bamba shot 34.5-percent from three-point range without Markelle Fultz last season. But in the 18 games played with him, he shot 46.0-percent from three-point land. He made 44 passes to Bamba resulting in 9-for-15 shooting from deep and 15-for-26 shooting overall off his passes. Fultz had 13 assists to Bamba.

Similarly, Wendell Carter averaged 20 points per game with Fultz last season and 14.2 without. Fultz made 40 passes to Carter resulting in five assists. Carter struggled to shoot, making just 5 of his 11 shots.

Fultz’s time with many of the starters was limited due to the nature of his return. But the potential for Fultz to work with both is evident.

Banchero will play in the same areas as those guys mentioned, so it is safe to say he will surely benefit from Fultz at the point leading the Magic offense.

And the eye test certainly would not disagree. The Magic simply looked like a totally different team with Fultz leading the offense.

Magic coach Jamahl Mosley echoed those sentiments stating how much Fultz made things simple for everyone around him and played like a leader. That is what Fultz does. He may not be a strong shooter, but he remains a big offensive weapon with his ability to eat up space and find pockets to pass the ball to teammates or set up his jumper when he is given the space.

It is easy to get excited thinking of the possibilities when he is paired with a natural scorer like Banchero.

Banchero displayed his ability to score on all three levels in the two summer league games he played. He scored at will and found his teammates very well and had a lot of eye-opening plays.

However, at times he was put into tough situations and passed the ball in spots where he does not excel.

R.J. Hampton is simply more of a 2-guard as opposed to a 1. There were times when Banchero had great positioning down low in the post and was missed and not given the ball. There were times when he had a mismatch and his teammates missed him.

That is where Fultz’s elite ability to break down the defense and find the best shot for the team comes in. He finds his teammates when they are open. He excels in finding them in areas that are their strength spots.

Fultz in his limited time ranked very highly in creating the best shot opportunities. He was second in the league in high-value assists per 75 possessions, according to Basketball Index. High-value assists are one that results in open rim shots, open 3-pointers or free throw attempts.

This may seem like a small stat. But out of those 10 players, eight are All-Stars. That just shows how elite of a playmaker Fultz truly is and how much guys like Banchero will benefit from his masterful passing.

The question will be just how much of this scales up as Fultz plays with more starters and more minutes. The potential is tantalizing.

Especially for a rookie, the transition to the NBA is not an easy one. The competition is simply way better, the defenders are way better and stronger than rookies are used to playing against. Banchero needs to be able to do the simple things and not force things on offense.

Rookies oftentimes can get frustrated when things get rough or they go into a cold slump. Sure, that will certainly happen to Banchero.

However, one thing is for sure. Banchero will at least be getting quality looks in his best spots. Or as Fultz likes to call them, “Kill spots.”

This is what Fultz can unlock. He has already shown he can get his teammates shots in spots where they can score. That is going to help a player like Banchero so much because Banchero can score from a number of spots and press his advantage.

Fultz, as he does for everyone, will make it easier for him to score.