'Mature' Paolo Banchero Takes Responsibility for Orlando Magic's Loss

The Orlando Magic lost to the Golden State Warriors, but Paolo Banchero received praise from Draymond Green.

Mar 27, 2024; Orlando, Florida, USA; Orlando Magic forward Paolo Banchero (5) drives the ball past Golden State Warriors guard Gary Payton II (0) / Nathan Ray Seebeck-USA TODAY Sports

The Orlando Magic fell to the Golden State Warriors on Wednesday night, 101-93. Draymond Green got ejected early in the first quarter, but a barrage of threes from Klay Thompson and Andrew Wiggins was enough to keep the Magic behind.

Of course, Orlando shooting 11 for 21 from the free-throw line didn't help their cause. Paolo Banchero only made four of his seven shots from the charity stripe, and had the Magic matched the Warriors' 84.6 percent clip from the line, they would have added seven points to their total. Had they surpassed Golden State, they could have hung on to win.

Mar 27, 2024; Orlando, Florida, USA; Orlando Magic forward Paolo Banchero (5) drives to the hoop against Andrew Wiggins (22) of the Golden State Warriors / Nathan Ray Seebeck-USA TODAY Sports

"It's really frustrating," said Banchero postgame. "You know, free throws decide wins and losses. We lost by eight and missed ten free throws. We make eight more, we’re in overtime and maybe win the game. Hopefully, we can work on them. Obviously, I could have shot better from the line too.”

As the Magic fight for home-court advantage in the first round of the playoffs, every game matters and each loss is more painful than the next. However, Draymond Green took to his podcast to suggest that the Magic are in a great spot and are led by Banchero, who, at only 21 years old, is already a top talent in the league.

"Gary [Harris] was confirming to me more of what I thought, which is Paolo is a serious guy," said Green. "He's mature and doesn't quite act like he's 21 years old. And he said something to me that I don't doubt one bit, and that I've thought from the beginning, which was 'Yeah Dray he'll probably be an All-Star the rest of his career, he's just figuring it out.'"

While Green has the reputation as a distraction who gets ejected way too much, he is still a winner and a future Hall of Famer, so any praise coming from him should be taken seriously. Regardless of how the seaosn ends for the Magic, it's safe to say that the core is set.