The Magic Insider

Hawks PG Trae Young Praises Magic Rookie Paolo Banchero

Orlando Magic forward Paolo Banchero has earned the respect of many stars around the league, including Atlanta Hawks point guard Trae Young.

Jeremy Brener

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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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Jeremy Brener
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.

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