As the Orlando Magic's starting lineup intros came to their crescendo and final player, the typical walkup music stopped and the chimes for The Undertaker's theme song came over the speakers.
This was the moment everyone was waiting for from fans to players to Paolo Banchero himself. The crowd noise got louder to welcome back Banchero in the most theatrical way possible. It was an event worthy of making a big deal as Banchero smiled at his return from a torn right oblique suffered in late October.
So how would Banchero play now that the introductions and nervousness were gone?
Just look to crunch time with the game on the line. Those killer instincts started to kick in. He started hunting the mismatches he wanted and taking smaller players to the post. He started eyeing the basket and forcing the defense to foul him and react to him.
It was like Banchero did not miss any time at all.
Of course, he did miss a lot of time. There were still mistakes and he was not all the way there. That was true late in the game. Just as he hit several big shots, he made some key mistakes.
But that was not the point. Nobody was thinking of that. They were just thinking of how much Banchero can transform this team and hte lift he can give them, even in a 109-106 loss to the Milwaukee Bucks.
Banchero made a loud statement of what is to come for him as he gets healthier and this team rounds into form.
"I honestly didn't even [see this]. It just kind of happened," Banchero said after Friday's game. "I think the only way I really know how to go about it is just to try and be myself as best I can. I didn't feel like my full self. I had a couple of moments where I wanted to dunk and my legs just didn't give me the boost I needed. I think as I keep going and getting more games under my belt, I think I'll start to feel my body kind of catch back up. I just tried to go out there and act like I had been playing."
All eyes on Paolo
Paolo Banchero poured in an unbelievable scoreline of 34 points, seven rebounds, and three assists while shooting 11 for 21 and 5 for 8 from three. All in 26:32—32 seconds over his minute restriction according to coach Jamahl Mosley.
The Orlando Magic were a +6 in Banchero's minutes, functioning at a higher level than the team had seen. The Magic posted a 114.5 offensive rating with Banchero in the game (better than the team's 110.4 rating for the game).
Everyone could feel every Bucks defender eyeing Banchero. At some point Banchero just gained
At a certain point, as Tristan da Silva put it, the Magic just had to feed him the ball and let him go to work.
"I didn't see that one coming. I can tell you that," Mosley said after Friday's game. "But that's who he is. The kid has been working his tail off to get back in. And so what he was able to do with pise, taking the right shots, the right time, defending, taking matchups on. Again, this tells you how much he wants to go get it and get after it. That's who he is. He's a star for a reason."
The amazing thing was that this did look like Banchero's first game back. Banchero always has that quiet confidence and once he got rolling he looked like he never missed a beat.
Still work to do
Of course, there were still hints that he still has work to do to get all the way back.
Paolo Banchero passed on opportunities to attack the basket even with smaller defenders on him. He was only two for five in the restricted area for the game, and six of his 10 free throw attempts came in the fourth quarter.
Nothing hurt more than his miss at the foul line with 10.1 seconds left in a two-point game. He could not tie the game at the foul line as he tried to will the Magic to a victory.
Banchero got a last-second three-point attempt with 0.4 seconds left but fumbled the catch and could not get the shot up before the buzzer to tie the game.
You could see where he still has to get his legs back on his finishes at the rim too. He said he had a few opportunities to get dunks, but his legs would not give him the lift to get up. He had one audacious dunk attempt over Giannis Antetokounmpo that fell short.
Banchero struggled with turnovers too with three in the game. He fumbled the ball a lot. It was clear at times his mind was working faster than his body could and even he was processing the game a bit slowly. His decision-making looked slow at times too.
Banchero admitted as much after the game.
He is back and the scoreline suggests how back he can be. But he is not all the way back. There is still work to do.
"I think I performed pretty good," Banchero said after Friday's game. "I think just for the way I was feeling the first couple of minutes, I definitely felt that my legs were kind of feeling a little weak and my wind not being there. But as the game went on, I kind of caught my wind and was able to kind of slow the game down. And honestly, once I got to that point, I think it just felt natural again."
Banchero's gravity
Still there were plenty of signs of what Banchero can do for this team. No one lingered on the misses late with Paolo Banchero back in the lineup. He can transform this Magic team and give them a needed mid-season lift as they continue to eye the playoffs.
He opened the game firing difficult passes to the wing and setting up players for their shot. It is probably not a coincidence the Orlando Magic made 14 of 40 3-pointers (35.0 percent) and most of those shots looked and felt natural.
Banchero was a threat from deep himself, making five of eight in the game. The whole offense seemed to open up for the team because of his presence.
His gravity felt very real. He came out of the gates with three quick assists and the whole Bucks defense was geared toward him.
"You can definitely tell everything is kind of shifting towards him," Tristan da Silva said after Friday's game. "He's got five pairs of eyes on him at all times. Obviously, you can check out the stats. He played a great game in his first game back. I'm excited for what's to come."
The next step
This is just the latest step in Paolo Banchero's return. Now he begins to regain his conditioning, come off the minute restriction and look and feel more like himself.
That will only come with more playing time and time on the court. He has to play his way back into the game.
Banchero reported he felt a little sore after the game Friday. That too will pass as he gets himself back into rhythm.
But if Friday was any indication that will come quickly. Banchero hit the ground running with all the excitement that comes with a return game. That will die down as he gets into the grind of the NBA season. The adrenaline will wear off.
Banchero though has proven over and over again what kind of player he is. His presence was a breath of fresh air for a moribund offense.
For now, he is just happy to make a basket and be back at home and back playing. Another key step and a big one that makes the Magic feel close to whole.