Since being selected first overall by the Orlando Magic back in the 2022 NBA Draft, Paolo Banchero has seen his and the overall team's stock steadily rise with every passing year.
From gradually upping his counting stats and establishing himself as an All-Star to guiding Orlando to the postseason in two consecutive campaigns after a three-year drought, it is widely believed that the forward is well on his way to superstardom.
Now, following an offseason filled with talent-pool upgrades, particularly headlined by the splashy Desmond Bane blockbuster, everything seems to be lining up for 2025-26 to be Banchero's best season yet.
However, should he somehow plateau or fall short of expectations with this now revamped team, uncomfortable questions will undoubtedly begin to rear their ugly heads.
Magic cornerstone Paolo Banchero must now prove superstar potential
Earlier this offseason, Banchero inked a lofty new $239 million contract extension to remain in Orlando through at least the 2029-30 season, with the potential to opt in for one more in 2030-31 via player option.
Clearly, this financial commitment shows that the Magic are comfortable with the 22-year-old serving as their anchor for the future. Now it's up to the forward to prove their confidence is warranted.
Despite his established All-Star status and impressive on-paper metrics, there's still widespread debate over just how good Banchero is and can be.
Though pro-Banchero fans may focus on things such as his career scoring averages of 22.4 points per game, those residing in the anti-camp will point to his inefficiencies such as his poor shooting splits of 44.5/32.0/73.0 and him averaging 2.9 turnovers per game since entering the league.
Granted, it's important to acknowledge that, for the majority of his tenure with the Magic, his running mates have been notably underwhelming.
Outside of the likes of Franz Wagner, the supporting cast Banchero has been surrounded by has been at best adequate, especially on the offensive side of the ball.
Because of this, the soon-to-be fourth-year pro has regularly been forced to shoulder the load in things like the scoring department to make up for the rest of the team's limitations, which leads to many arguing that his inefficiencies have actually been the result of a necessity for him to chuck up an abundance of shots more than anything else.
During this upcoming campaign, the 22-year-old will easily have the best collection of talent around him to date, for not only will he have Wagner once again by his side, but he'll now also be accompanied by offseason newcomers Tyus Jones and Bane.
The addition of Jones is one that should, in theory, help Banchero get better looks at scoring opportunities thanks to his impressive passing skills (averages 10.1 assists per 100 possessions and boasts a 28.7 assist percentage for his career). Having a natural set-up artist in the fold should only have a positive impact on his scoring efficiency.
As for Bane's arrival, on top of him drawing defenders off of the forward due to his own scoring abilities (has averaged 21.2 points on 47.7 percent shooting from the floor and 39.4 percent from deep since 2022-23), he also now serves as an elite kick-out option (shot 42.3 percent on catch-and-shoot triples last year) for Banchero, who is one of the most dominant drivers the game has to offer.
On paper, it's safe to say that the Magic cornerstone is set up to have yet another career year and, in turn, shut down some of the bigger talking points against him being the future superstar the franchise is paying him to be.
Of course, should he find himself falling short of these expectations while continuing to struggle in the areas he has throughout his career, doubts about how high his ceiling actually is and whether he truly was worth Orlando's max investment may start to pop up rather quickly.