Paolo Banchero makes history by setting the tone for others

Paolo Banchero was getting serenaded in perhaps the last place anybody would expect him to be hearing "M-V-P" chants.

They started late in the third quarter as the Orlando Magic opened a 30-point lead with Banchero at the foul line. A group of Magic fans clustered in seats behind the Magic's bench were finally able to puff their chests inside Kaseya Center.

An offseason fretting about this game and worrying the Magic still had to deal with the zombie Miami Heat for another year was put to rest fairly quickly. Banchero has been the catharsis for a fan base that has always sought respect and had little reason to ask for it for the past decade.

Banchero got serenaded again as he left the floor. The fans clad in blue grew in number around the tunnel heading to the Magic locker room by the game's end. The Heat fans exited quietly.

And Banchero left the court, unbeknownst to those in the arena, with another promise as he spoke with FanDuel Sports Network's Kendra Douglas. This was just the beginning.

Banchero spoke about it after the game. Every part of this game was about setting a tone for the season—not merely about backing up their talk or defeating a rival. Banchero's game and the way that he played spoke to how he and the rest of this team want to play.

If teams take their cues from their best players, Banchero helped set the tone in every way for this team. This was a strong opening statement.

The final tally from opening night: 33 points, 12-for-24 shooting, 4-for-8 shooting from three, 11 rebounds, three assists and zero turnovers. He was the first Magic player to score 30 points in a season opener since Tracy McGrady and trailed only Shaquille O'Neal's 42 points in 1993 for most points in a Magic season opener.

Banchero continues to put himself among the best players in Magic history. It is hard for him to bask in all that history. It is humbling to live up to and be compared to the franchise's standard bearers.

But the more important part was the Magic got the win. They got the win the way they want to win too. And Banchero was a big part of that.

"We knew it was going to be a tough game coming in here," Banchero said after Wednesday's win. "I don't think a lot of us have won here in our careers as a team. We knew we were going to have to play a hell of a game and come out with a lot of energy. To put that effort in the second half and pull away in the fashion that we did and turn defense into offense, that's our calling card. That's our identity. It was fun to see that."

Banchero said he has never been on a team this committed to defense. To see the team find results on defense the way they did and burn off an 18-0 run on the road and then later an 18-2 run in the third quarter was astounding even to him.

But that is what the team is good at. And that Banchero, who was not known as a defender entering the league, has committed himself to becoming a defender speaks to how he has improved as a leader.

Banchero set the tone with his patience

Paolo Banchero's development is as key to anything the Orlando Magic are trying to do this season as anything else.

They have put the ball in his hands throughout his first two seasons and he has thrived as a scorer trying to figure his way through the league. But now the team needs him to increase his efficiency and direct the entire team.

The preseason was encouraging, to say the least. He looked more patient and picked his spots when to attack. That carried over into Wednesday's game.

While Banchero had the big scoring game and 18 points at the half, he remained fairly patient. He did not impose himself on the game or overdribble into contested jumpers.

He looked to attack hedges and hunt mismatches. If it was not there, he moved the ball. And when he got in transition and found a matchup he liked, he attacked it aggressively.

Nothing seemed forced with Banchero. He did not try to do too much. That economy of his dribble and decision-making bode well for the team moving forward.

As impressive as his 33 points were, his most impressive play might have been the behind-the-back pass he fed to a cutting Franz Wagner for a layup. That was as essential to the history Banchero and the Magic made Wednesday as anything else.

"There is a reason why great players are great," coach Jamahl Mosley said after Wednesday's game. "The reason why he is great is because he's humble, he works, he cares about his teammates and he is not changing who he is regardless of what comes his way in accolades. The number one thing he wants to do is win. He's going to find a way to win whether he has to score 33 and grab 11 rebounds or he scores 12 and dishes out 12 assists. He's going to find a way to help this team win. That's what great players do."

Banchero will lift his teammates

This is a team sport. Everyone has their weight to pull.

But Paolo Banchero has the most weight as the star player. He got the wall treatment with the Miami Heat trying to put multiple bodies in his way to prevent him from going to the basket. Teams constantly double-team him.

Banchero said during the preseason he has learned how to take what the defense is giving him. The game slowed down for him throughout last year and even more so in the Playoffs. His close to the series with the Cleveland Cavaliers was the stuff stars are made of.

Everyone was curious how he would add to his game. Wednesday's game looked like a giant leap on the box score. But it was truly a giant leap in several areas for him. His patience and his trust in his teammates has clearly grown too.

Everyone on the Magic knows what he is capable of. They know night like this are not going to be rare.

"He's a professional. That's what he does," Gary Harris said after Wednesday's game. "He will continue to get better especially the more experience and more games he gets. He's a hell of a talent. We all know that. It's been fun to watch him grow and he's still growing. The sky is the limit for him. It's fun for all of us to get behind him and follow his lead."

It is just one game. No one should be overreacting to one game. Banchero is not the favorite to win MVP quite yet.

But everyone can feel the leap Banchero is beginning to make. Everyone can see the potential that he has. And everyone can feel his impact when he is on the floor.

That was part of the tone the Magic set on opening night. That is part of the tone Banchero set.