“I am tired, extremely tired. But it was an incredible match. » Paolo Banchero may be tired, because he gave everything to allow the Magic to overcome the Pacers, in a very competitive meeting.
He thus tied Tracy McGrady's franchise record for points scored in a half. At the break, he was already at 37 points at 13/17 shooting including 3/6 from distance, 7 rebounds and 6 assists!
“I was just in the zone” he explained. “I felt like I was in an open gym, at home, working on my game. Every shot I took, I felt like it was going to go in and it's a good feeling. It's not like that every game, but I'm happy because it was the case today. »
Untenable at mid-distance or in the attack of the circle for Pascal Siakam, Obi Toppin and company, Paolo Banchero felt so good that he calmly went to find his 3-point spot, on the right side of the field.
In the footsteps of LeBron James
Certainly, halftime cooled him down and the Pacers' “run” in the third quarter almost spoiled this “magical first half”but Paolo Banchero knew how to react, like his teammates, to validate the victory.
He thus finished with 50 points at 16/26 shooting, including 3/9 from distance, 13 rebounds and 9 assists in 40 minutes.
Paolo Banchero is only the third Magic player to pass the 50 point mark in a game, after Trace McGrady (4 times), Shaquille O'Neal and Nick Anderson. At 21 years and 351 days old, however, he is the youngest to do so.
And in the history of the NBA, only LeBron James, to whom he is increasingly compared, managed a game with 50 points, 10 rebounds and 5 assists while being younger than him. It was 2005, and the “King” was 20 years and 80 days old.
| Paolo Banchero | Percentage | Rebounds | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | MJ | Min | Shots | 3pts | L.F. | Off | Def | Early | Pd | Party | Int | Bp | Ct | Pts |
| 2022-23 | ENT | 72 | 34 | 42.7 | 29.8 | 73.8 | 1.2 | 5.7 | 5.7 | 3.7 | 2.2 | 0.8 | 2.8 | 0.5 | 20.0 |
| 2023-24 | ENT | 80 | 35 | 45.5 | 33.9 | 72.5 | 1.0 | 5.9 | 5.9 | 5.4 | 1.9 | 0.9 | 3.1 | 0.6 | 22.6 |
| 2024-25 | ENT | 3 | 35 | 40.8 | 42.9 | 60.0 | 2.7 | 5.3 | 5.3 | 5.0 | 2.3 | 0.7 | 1.0 | 0.7 | 21.3 |
| Total | 155 | 34 | 44.2 | 32.3 | 72.8 | 1.1 | 5.8 | 5.8 | 4.6 | 2.1 | 0.9 | 2.9 | 0.6 | 21.3 | |
How to read the stats? MJ = matches played; Min = Minutes; Shots = Successful shots / Attempted shots; 3pts = 3-points / 3-points attempted; LF = free throws made / free throws attempted; Off = offensive rebound; Def=defensive rebound; Tot = Total rebounds; Pd = assists; Fte: Personal fouls; Int = Intercepts; Bp = Lost balls; Ct: Against; Pts = Points.
