Still confused how ppl were down on him before the season, you could see all these tools and dominant performances at Duke already, plus he had the body to compete with NBA players.
I think only Chet was consistently high. Jabari also had his up and downs in mock drafts. I think teams wanted a lockdown defender and rim protector so bad but it's nearly impossible with those two tooth picks early on.
Nature of human ego. Some guys get attached to a personal aesthetic preference or a number of other anecdotal things about players. They desire that feeling of justification. Feels good to be in on something from the ground up I get it. I've been there too with some misguided biases about players for whatever reason. Paolo was the complete package though and is showing why so many thought we was tailor made for the NBA. Dude hit the ground running and wont look back for at least 15 years. Hell of a player and great person too. Hope he reaches all of his goals.
Points in first 9 Career Games: 196 — Paolo Banchero 180 — Kevin Durant 173 — Magic Johnson 157 — Chris Paul 146 — LeBron James 105 — Russell Westbrook 76 — Stephen Curry 55 — James Harden 46 — Kobe Bryant 44 — Giannis Antetokounmpo
I don't wanna be a d*ck about it but to all those who didn't see the light leading up to the draft - how are we feeling now? We had folks putting him outside their top 3-4. He's arguably been better as a pro than at Duke.
*shrug* gif. You're not being a dick. I thought he was the best in the draft, but so far, he's exceeded my expectations. I thought he was a little bit ahead of others in his draft class, but he looks like he's special so far. Interesting player for sure. We never had a chance to draft him once the Magic made one of their very few smart moves.
Sometimes you miss out on franchise changing talents due to lotto balls. Orlando doesn't miss with # 1 picks. Shaq, Webber, Dwight, Paolo. Basically 3 HOF players + Paolo on pace for best start since LeBron really.
