Is Paolo Banchero Now the Beast Of The East?

If he’s not, he may be soon.

Remember when Duke star Paolo Banchero was waiting for the NBA Draft in 2022, and there were a lot of people who expected Auburn’s Jabari Smith to go first?

Didn’t happen.

Smith actually fell to third as Orlando surprised many, including Banchero to an extent, by taking him #1 (Chet Holmgren went #2 to OKC).

Banchero rapidly proved Orlando’s judgment was correct, winning Rookie of the Year in 2023 and being named an All-Star in 2024.

He’s widely seen as a rising star and just two weeks ago, he signed a massive extension with the Magic for as much as $287 million.

Now that he’s established though, just how good is Banchero?

On a recent episode of the Jeff Teague’s podcast, they had a discussion which got pretty interesting.

Co-host Bishop B. Henn said “that’s the best player in the East right now.”

Teague disagreed, saying it was still Giannis Antetokounmpo, but he agreed that Banchero was moving up: “I ain’t gonna say that, but he cold.”

Generally speaking, we don't like to argue with people who have coached or competed t the highest level, so we’ll just say this: Banchero might not be better than Giannis right now, but he’s just 22. He’s built a massive reputation in just three short seasons. If he’s not the best player now, he’s got a great shot at getting there soon.