2022 NBA Re-Draft: Magic Still Select Paolo Banchero No. 1?

The Orlando Magic has been very impressed with Paolo Banchero after his rookie season.

Jeremy Brener | Apr 11, 2023

Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports

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Orlando Magic

ORLANDO - Orlando Magic rookie Paolo Banchero is taking it all in after having one of the better rookie seasons in recent memory.

Banchero's efforts make it no surprise that Bleacher Report made him the No. 1 overall pick in its 2022 re-draft exercise.

"The Orlando Magic wouldn't hesitate to re-draft Paolo Banchero," Bleacher Report writes. "Aside from historic production—he'll join Luka Dončić as the only rookies to average at least 20.0 points, 6.0 rebounds and 3.0 assists with over 75 threes—Banchero has the type of creation, shot-making and passing skill set for a No. 1 option."

The scariest part about Banchero's game is the fact that he's only 20 years old and has just 72 career games under his belt.

"You don't ever think about it during the season," Banchero said in Monday's exit interview. "But once the season's over and you see your accomplishments, what you were able to do and you put it in perspective with a guy like LeBron James, it definitely means something, especially with him being one of my favorite players growing up."

With his first full NBA offseason coming up, Banchero will have the opportunity to improve on his game with the Magic coaching and development staff in order to continue to prove why he was the No. 1 pick a year ago and why he still deserves to be labeled as the best player from the 2022 NBA Draft class.

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Published Apr 11, 2023

JEREMY BRENER

Jeremy Brener is an editor, writer and social media manager for several Fan Nation websites. His work has also been featured in 247 Sports and SB Nation as a writer and podcaster. Brener has been with Fan Nation since 2021. Brener grew up in Houston, going to Astros, Rockets and Texans games as a kid. He moved to Orlando in 2016 to go to college and pursue a degree. He hosts "The Dream Take" podcast covering the Rockets, which has produced over 350 episodes since March 2020. Brener graduated in May 2020 from the University of Central Florida with a Bachelor's degree in Broadcast Journalism minoring in Sport Business Management. While at UCF, Brener worked for the school's newspaper NSM.today and "Hitting the Field," a student-run sports talk show and network. He was the executive producer for "Hitting the Field" from 2019-20. During his professional career, Brener has covered a number of major sporting events including the Pro Bowl, March Madness and several NBA and NFL games. As a fan, Brener has been to the 2005 World Series, 2010 FIFA World Cup and the 2016 NCAA National Championship between the Villanova Wildcats and North Carolina Tar Heels. Now, Brener still resides in the Central Florida area and enjoys writing, watching TV, hanging out with friends and going to the gym. Brener can be followed on Twitter @JeremyBrener. For more inquiries, please email jeremybrenerchs@gmail.com.