It's Friday, and that means 10 more NBA things to explore across the league! This week, we highlight a potential savior in Orlando, what the Knicks need to do just to stay at .500, aimlessness in Minnesota and glimpses of change for Trae Young.
1. Can Paolo Banchero save the Orlando Magic?
Banchero's debut streak of six 20-plus-point games drew all the attention, but the eye test sings even louder than the numbers.
It is rare for a rookie to look the part right away. Banchero is big and strong, and plays with the controlled confidence of a veteran. He can do a little bit of everything on offense, enabling the Magic to play goofy super-big lineups featuring Banchero, Wendell Carter Jr., and Bol Bol. (Carter keeps getting better. He's added a little more power -- a mean streak resulting in more free throws. This Bol Bol thing might be real. He's shooting 72% on 2s and blotting out the rim on defense. Orlando even used him at backup center over Mohamed Bamba in the first half Thursday against the reeling Golden State Warriors.)
Banchero is running 27 pick-and-rolls per 100 possessions, about the same as Jamal Murray and Paul George, per Second Spectrum tracking. That's ridiculous for a rookie big man. Banchero has a crafty off-the-bounce game, and he maps the floor a beat ahead of the action:
Banchero hypnotizes P.J. Washington with a languid dribble toward his screener, and zooms the other way. Banchero then gets off the ball early, with the defense just beginning its rotation, and flings a tough cross-court pass to R.J. Hampton. Most ball handlers look first to the shooter in the weak-side corner. That's the pass defenses expect. Banchero skips that link in the chain, and generates a wide-open shot. You can make that pass at that tempo only if you anticipate it.
Banchero is making a lot of sophisticated passes out of the pick-and-roll, and Orlando has scored well out of those actions. Banchero looks comfortable posting up; going one-on-one from the perimeter; rampaging in transition; and running the offense from the elbows.
Orlando has scored 1.120 points per possession out of Banchero isolations -- 39th among 118 ball handlers who have recorded at least 10 isos, per Second Spectrum data. Producing under such a heavy burden -- on a rebuilding team battling injuries across the backcourt -- is massively encouraging.
Banchero has a gorgeous leaning floater: