There was a lot to celebrate for the Orlando Magic on Monday night as Paolo Banchero stepped to the line to try to ice the game against the Indiana Pacers and hit his 50th point.
Everyone had waited for Banchero to ascend to the throne of superstardom that he seemed destined to reach after last year's playoff performance and really since he became the No. 1 pick. All the doubts and all the questions about his impact and his ability to affect winning basketball were all laid bare.
At the foul line, Banchero joined an exclusive club and made a statement of his intentions for the season. Cole Anthony pointed to his jersey to signal just how many points Banchero scored in the Orlando Magic's 119-115 win over the Indiana Pacers on Monday.
Fifty points is something to celebrate.
Banchero did whatever his team needed him to do. He took over the game in the first half with a Magic franchise record-tying 37 points, putting his name alongside the likes of Tracy McGrady and Shaquille O'Neal in franchise history.
If that was not enough, he nearly put in a triple-double with 13 rebounds and nine assists. All of those numbers were just as vital as the 50 points he scored. He had to be a threat both as a scorer and a passer to finish the game.
But the end of the game is where stars are made. And it is what Banchero did at the end and the glory he passed on that shows the kind of star he can be.
It was the defense and rebounding that made the difference for Banchero and his team on this night. Ultimately it was a decision to pass and trust his teammates that got the most important stat: a win.
"The 50 was a beautiful piece," coach Jamahl Mosley said after Monday's win. "But the other side was the way he sat down and guarded. Taking on the challenge of guarding Siakam knowing he had four fouls and he didn't get in foul trouble after that. That's hat off to him. There was just grit. No matter what guys found a way to step in and step up. You're proud of a group that understands the importance of these moments and those possessions."
It may go against the shooter's code in this kind of a game, but with 50 seconds in a tie game, Banchero understood his role in the offense. He looked at the top of the key and drove toward the basket, sucking in defenders with him.
That is when he kicked to the opposite corner to a wide-open Jalen Suggs. Suggs caught the ball, sidestepped a defender closing out and kicked the ball to Anthony Black in the corner. Black drained the three to give the Magic a three-point lead with 33.3 seconds left, eventually clinching the game.
Banchero did not record an assist—it would have been his 10th giving the Magic their first ever 50-point triple-double and putting Banchero in even more exclusive air. But it was the right play. The right play to win the game and that is all that matters.
What has always differentiated Banchero in the eyes of his coach is that he is a winner. That he will make the right play to win the game.
And on a night that was all about Banchero and his scoring prowess, he passed on the decisive statistical glory to let a second-year player decide the game. That faith was rewarded.
"Obviously his offensive game is special," Jalen Suggs said after Monday's win. "He has one of the most special bags in the league. But he plays winning basketball and he wants to win basketball games. That's what I think makes him special and that's why I love to play with him. It's never about personal accolades, it's never about personal stats. He wants to do whatever it take sto win. Tonight it was a 50-ball. And he produced it."
Banchero's set the tone in the fourth quarter
That is what defined the end of the game completely too.
Paolo Banchero scored nine points in the fourth quarter, making all three of his shots (although only three of his seven free throws). After going without a field goal in a lax third quarter and with the Magic trailing by as much as eight, Banchero had to go on the attack to lift his team and secure the win.
He re-entered the game with 7:51 to play and went on to hit a step-back mid-range jumper with 6:09 to play to cut the deficit to three and then drive to the basket 1.5 minutes later to cut it to one. Banchero had a chance to tie the game a minute later with a sprawling and-1 shot (but missed the free throw, the only flaw anyone can find in his game).
Banchero was an unrelenting force throughout the game trying to attack the basket.
But the big plays he made were his rebounds and his defense. With the Magic having to go small with Jonathan Isaac (left hip contusion), Franz Wagner (illness) and Tristan da Silva (illness) unavailable, the Magic struggled to contain Pascal Siakam (26 points on 10-for-18 shooting).
In the fourth quarter, Siakam made just 2 of 7 shots and Banchero grabbed three of his 13 rebounds. All came in big spots late in the game as the Magic tried to complete their comeback and secure the victory in the final moments.
Banchero's scoring is important but he knows he needs a complete game to be the great player he can be.
"I think being a leader, you've got to set the tone for the rest of the team," Banchero said after Monday's win. "Sometimes I forget it. When I say I'm still learning, that's what I mean. I hae to be that every night. My intensity has to be at a certain level for us to be a good team and be where we want to be. I'm still working on that. I'm still getting there. That's where I want to be where every night, i"m bringing the same intensity and sae attitude and putting it forth for the team."
That remains one of the biggest lessons.
Banchero's 37 points in the first half—19 in the first quarter and 18 in the second—came from the understanding he sets the tone for the team. He was not happy with how he played in the games against the Brooklyn Nets and Memphis Grizzlies the last two times out. He knew he had to set a tone and said he wanted to come in with an aggressive mindset.
More than that, he knows the team takes its energy from him. He said the area of leadership he is still learning is to be that steady metronome and play at a high level at all times of the game.
That might explain a frustrating third quarter when the whole team came out lax, giving up 39 points and 18 free throw attempts on 13 fouls in the quarter. It disrupted the team's rhythm and they were not locked in to the game plan as they needed to be. It starts with Banchero and he had to lock back in.
That is why his locking in on defense at the end of the game mattered as much as the points he scored to get them to and over the finish line. It is the plays and trusts in his teammates and his willingness to get grimy that will matter as this team develops.
"He's making the right play trying to do the right thing and trying to get his teammates involved," Jamahl Mosley said after Monday's win. "Great players make those around them great as well. That is what this group did. But more importantly, you see what the final defensive fourth quarter was. You are going to win games on the defensive end of the floor. You hold them to 17 points after giving up 39 in that third. You got to make sure you sit down and got stops and that's what we did."
Banchero is on a path to superstardom
There is no denying Banchero's future stardom now. A 50-point game puts him in exclusive air and exclusive history. This does not seem like the last 50-point game he will have considering the ease at which he attacked and scored throughout the first half of the game.
Banchero is defining his stardom and the level of player he will be compared to. He believed he had jumped another level in the offseason. This was merely confirmation.
But Banchero says it all the time: All the accolades do not mean anything without the victory at the end. And gassed from carrying this team through the game to this point, he had to find some bit of reserve. He did and his team got the victory.
Banchero was the hero for scoring 50 and setting all this history. But what mattered was the plays he made that do not show up in those 50 points. That is what makes Banchero a special player.