Paolo

Banchero

Wagner added two boards, six assists, two steals and a block. It was a poor night in the efficiency department for Wagner, and it didn’t help that Paolo Banchero went 5-of-15 from the field. The star dup combined for 38 points on 11-of-33 shooting and failed to convert on their eight combined three-point attempts. Fortunately, all of Orlando’s starters scored at least 17 points to keep this one competitive, but Orlando has now dropped five straight. Wagner and Banchero will need to play better than this to stop the current skid, especially with a five-game road trip coming up that includes games against the Bucks, Rockets, Wolves and Cavs.

Banchero turned a lot of his weaknesses into strengths on Tuesday. Poor shooting percentages, an abundance of turnovers and a lack of defensive production have all limited Banchero’s value in nine-cat leagues, but that wasn’t the case on Tuesday. He set a new season-high for steals, shot the ball incredibly well and only had three turnovers. Managers shouldn’t expect this type of production from Banchero often, but it was a nice bonus in this game, and he hit some big shots down the stretch that nearly gave the Magic the win. They have two more games this week, with a home matchup against Chicago on Thursday up next.

Banchero only attempted nine shots on Sunday, but that’s because he made a living at the foul line. He’s attempted at least eight free throws in every game the Magic have played since the All-Star break, hitting double digits on three occasions. With Jalen Suggs (knee surgery) out indefinitely, the Magic will need more production from Banchero and Franz Wagner offensively as they look to avoid a freefall down the East standings.

Golden State didn’t have an answer for Banchero early on in this game, which allowed him to score 24 points in the first half alone. Banchero wasn’t quite able to match his first half scoring total after the break, but he was able to get over 40 points for the second time this season and the first time since October. Banchero also shot a high percentage from the floor, which was great to see after he went eight straight games making less than 50 percent of his shot attempts. He’ll look to keep this going into Orlando’s final game of the week, which is a home matchup with Toronto on Sunday.

Banchero haș now scored at least 20 points in five of his last six games and shot at least 40 percent from the field in all but three games in February. The 22-year-old power forward has shown an ability to get to the foul line and knock down his free throws of late as he’s made at least seven free throws in five of his last six games. His three-point shot has been another story as he continued to struggle with a 1-of-7 performance from behind the three-point line Tuesday. Banchero will look to turn that around Thursday against the Warriors.

This was a tale of two halves for Banchero. He was limited to just eight minutes in the first half due to foul trouble, and he struggled in his limited action. He missed all six of his shot attempts and entered halftime with just two points. He made five of his 15 shots after halftime, which is still subpar, but he was able to score 19 of his 21 points in the second half. Banchero’s free throw shooting is still a weakness, but he was able to get their with ease after halftime. Still, Banchero has scored at least 20 points in four straight games and will look to keep that going against the Wizards on Sunday.

Banchero did most of his work in the second quarter of Thursday’s win. After scoring just two points in the opening frame, Banchero dropped 18 points in the second to help Orlando take a halftime lead despite a poor first quarter. Banchero was inconsistent in January, which isn’t surprising after he missed three months, but he is starting to get back to elite production, even if it doesn’t translate well to category leagues. This was Banchero’s highest-scoring performance since he dropped 50 points in October, and he’ll look to keep it going into a matchup with the Grizzlies on Friday.

Banchero went into the All-Star break with a solid performance, dishing out six assists without committing a turnover. However, turnovers and percentages have been an issue for the Magic forward. Over the past two weeks, Banchero has averaged 2.5 turnovers per game and shot 40.9 percent from the field and 67.6 percent from the foul line. He’s averaging over 22 points per game on the season, but the eight-cat fantasy value has regressed compared to his 2023-24 All-Star campaign.

Banchero did most of his work during the third quarter of Monday’s loss as he scored 20 of his 31 points in the period. Banchero has had a handful of poor performances recently, so having a game like this was encouraging. A lack of defensive production continues to limit his value in nine-cat leagues, and the field goal percentage and turnover issues don’t seem to be going anywhere. Banchero’s game is ideal for points leagues, but he needs to make major strides to be truly valuable in category formats. Luckily, he’s only 22 years old, so he has plenty of time.

Banchero’s run of inconsistent offensive performances continued Saturday against the Spurs. He had 17 points on 17 field goal attempts including an 0-of-4 performance from behind the 3-point line. Banchero had to deal with Victor Wembanyama, which isn’t an easy matchup by any means. The 22-year-old power forward also dished out six assists, but he’s scored at least 20 points in just four of his last 11 games.