Paolo Banchero Update: Legend Rising?
There’s a good argument
Duke fans are well aware of just how impressive Paolo Banchero has been in the NBA, but we’re not the only ones following him closely. Back home in Seattle, the Seattle Times is already trying to figure out where to rank the still-rising young superstar in the local pantheon.
And the Seattle area has plenty of players to rank: Brandon Roy (who saw his career greatly shortened by injury), Spencer Hawes, Dejounte Murray, Jason Terry, Zach Lavine, Isaiah Thomas, Jamal Crawford and Nate Robinson among them - but. as Times columnist Matt Calkins points out, no real legends have emerged from Seattle.
Banchero may be on track to become one.
He missed a major chunk of this season with an oblique injury but is averaging 25.9 ppg, 7.5 rpg and 4.8 apg. That’s really rather impressive. Here are some comparisons.
- In his third season, Larry Bird averaged 22.9 points, 10.9 rebounds and 5.8 assists.
- In his third season, Tim Duncan averaged 23.2 points, 9.1 rebounds and 3.2 assists.
- And his third season, Jason Tatum averaged 23.4 points, 7.0 rebounds and 3.0 assists.
We’re not suggesting that Banchero is as good as those guys became and certainly not yet. But is he on track to becoming a legend?
Looks like it.