Hawks PG Trae Young Praises Magic Rookie Paolo Banchero
ORLANDO - Even though Orlando Magic forward Paolo Banchero and Atlanta Hawks point guard Trae Young are division rivals, there's some respect between the two. Game recognizes game.
Young appeared on "The Point Podcast" recently and spoke about the Magic, Banchero and gave them some flowers.
"You can tell he's their franchise guy going forward," Young said on The Point Podcast. "He's a leader, so I'm looking to see what he does. Usually them really good players make that second-year jump, so I'm looking to see what he does."
This season, the No. 1 overall pick in last year's NBA Draft became just the sixth rookie in NBA history to average 20 points, six points and three assists, making him a shoo-in for the Rookie of the Year award. As he won Eastern Conference Rookie of the Month four times throughout the season, it became pretty clear that Banchero was the favorite to win.
Now that he's coming off a Rookie of the Year campaign, Banchero hopes to check off another item on his NBA bucket list as he enters his second season.
"Next year is playoffs or bust for me, for everyone," Banchero said. "I know the way we've been talking to each other, that's all we're worried about."
If Young's prediction is right and Banchero has that big second-year jump, the Magic will have a great chance to reach the postseason.
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