2023 Orlando Magic player Outlook: Paolo Banchero must trust strengths

Paolo Banchero is the most anticipated draft pick for the Orlando Magic since they drafted Dwight Howard back in 2004.

He is expected to be the franchise guy that Orlando has not had in the last decade. Any first overall pick would.

He is considered the most pro-ready prospect in this year’s class and has a game that fits well with the current Magic roster.

Because of these things, Banchero will face a lot of pressure right from the jump. And for him to have success this upcoming season, he will need to find a way to handle the pressure and when the going gets tough, rely on what got him here.

Paolo Banchero enters his rookie season with the Orlando Magic with the pressure that comes with being the top pick. To have a successful first season, he has to do what got him here.

Luckily for Banchero, he was the leader of a Mike Kzrzyewski’s final Duke team which played every night with heavy media coverage. So the pressure he will face night in and night out in the NBA should not overwhelm him (and being in nondescript Orlando will not hurt either).

Pressure should not be a problem, something president of basketball operations Jeff Weltman noted during the team’s Media Day. Nobody is worried about Banchero stepping up to the plate. And everyone so far is buzzing about what the 6-foot-10 forward can do on the court.

No one should be surprised that Banchero can perform and play under pressure.

At Duke with everyone watching, he averaged a team-high 17.2 points per game, a team-high 7.8 rebounds per game. He shot 47.8 percent from the floor and 33.8 percent from three.

Banchero led the Blue Devils, with the college basketball world watching closely (this can not be overstated enough), to a Final Four appearance. And during that stretch, he elevated his game earning NCAA All-Tournament honors, averaging 18.8 points and 7.6 rebounds per game with 50.0/52.6/72.7 shooting splits in five games.

That seemed to point toward Banchero’s ability to step up and cement his status as one of the best players in his draft class. It certainly clinched his spot among the top three players in this Draft.

The NBA season is much longer than the college basketball season.

It is one thing to be reliable in college. But in 82 games, that will almost certainly wear away if you cannot produce on the court.

To prevent this, there are a few parts of Banchero’s game he will want to focus on when he is at the next level. The most important being leaning into his size and strength.

Outside of Mo Bamba or Wendell Carter, Paolo Banchero might just be the most physically imposing player on the Magic and that is what makes Banchero so tough to guard.

Standing at 6-foot-10 and weighing 250 pounds, the combination of shooting and strength coupled with his high usage rate at Duke simply overwhelmed opponents.

One of the biggest benefits from that play style is his ability to get to the free throw line.

At Duke, Banchero averaged 4.8 free throws per game and shot 188 of them in 39 college games. That amount would already put him in fourth place on the Magic despite playing 39 games, less than half of an NBA season.

For Orlando, a player getting to the line and being able to convert easy baskets on offense will be extremely valuable. That will ease other parts of his game too.

It will help the offense avoid stagnation when threes are not falling and it will bring the defense in allowing shooters to get open looks.

Banchero’s physicality is key to his overall immediate success, not just to him getting free throw attempts.

It allows him not to wear down like other young players as the season drags on. At Duke, he showcased this with a usage rate of 27.5 percent and accounting for 665 total points (second in the ACC).

And on top of that, his efficiency numbers stayed steady.

While totaling the ninth most minutes in all of college basketball and accounting for the most field goal attempts on his own team, he maintained a PER of 24.2 and shot 48 percent from the floor.

It is understandable to think the level of reliability Banchero demonstrated in college might seem tough to replicate in the NBA. But simply put, that is what makes him so special. His knack for staying involved and not going cold for long periods of time is a direct testament to his mental prowess — which is not mentioned enough — and of course, his physical ability.

Is it unreasonable to expect an exact copy-paste of who he was in college? Yes, absolutely.

But what Banchero needs to do is play similarly to how he did at Duke and embrace his NBA-ready frame.

The same physicality he uses on offense could help him defensively. His rebounding is his most underrated ability and it is here where the Magic will need Banchero to continue to be a presence.

At Duke, he averaged 7.8 rebounds per game and grabbed the second most boards (304) in all of the ACC. He also finished the year 15th in the nation and second in the ACC in defensive rebounds.

The Magic already have plenty of front-court depth with Mo Bamba, Jonathan Isaac and Wendell Carter (not to mention Franz Wagner, Moe Wagner and Bol Bol for further support). But Banchero might just find himself as a center in a small ball lineup. The Magic certainly seem willing to experiment with lineups.

That will be something to keep an eye on as the season ramps up. In situations where he might not be the focal point of the offense, we could see him at the 5.

Orlando is going to be versatile enough that Banchero will need his skills inside and outside the paint on offense and to be able to defend the paint and the perimeter on defense.

Regardless of if Banchero leans on his size or handles the pressure or is trusted by Magic brass from Day 1, expect him to find his way on the court even during slumps or struggles.

Capable of handling the ball from his college days, and having the ability to slip into any position in the front court will make him a valuable piece to a young team attempting to find lineups that work.

For a decade, Magic fans have seen what a franchise without a superstar looks like, and it is not pretty.

Banchero surely has the makings to be that next guy for the Magic and if he can focus on what makes him special then his transition to the NBA will be seamless.

Leaning into his physicality and continuing to handle the pressure will be the keys to his success. And if he does both of those things then Rookie of the Year could be in the cards for Banchero.

For Orlando, if the team can trust its number one overall pick/most NBA-ready prospect they have had in a long time, then the team could have the success that has escaped it for years.

So far the marriage, albeit still in the honeymoon stage, seems to be going smoothly. But for the marriage to become long and fruitful, both sides