Orlando Magic rising star Paolo Banchero is confident that he can lead his team to a better finish in the 2024-25 NBA campaign and pass multiple teams in the Eastern Conference, including the New York Knicks.
Banchero led the Magic back from the depths of the NBA’s no man’s land in 2023-24. Orlando improved by 13 wins and finished with a 47-35 overall record on the year. They did so with the former No. 1 overall pick leading their charge behind 22.6 points, 6.9 rebounds, and 5.4 assists per contest on a respectable 45.5 percent shooting from the floor. His play earned him his first All-Star nod and the Magic’s first trip to the playoffs since 2019-20.
Banchero had the effect that a top draft pick typically has on a franchise with only a year under his belt, and foresees his career trajectory yielding another jump in productivity and team success. The only way that can happen is if the Magic leapfrog the top four seeds in the East from last year that finished ahead of them in the standings, being the No. 1-seeded Boston Celtics, the No. 2-seeded Knicks, the No. 3-seeded Milwaukee Bucks and the No. 4-seeded Cleveland Cavaliers.
Paolo Banchero wants to lead the Magic to a better record than the Knicks in 2024-25
The Duke University product had this to say when a guest on ESPN First Take about how he felt the Magic performed last time out and where he wants to see them finish in the upcoming campaign, which would directly impact the Knicks as a result (h/t Bleacher Report’s Timothy Rapp via Jeremy Brener of New York Knicks on SI):
“We feel like we’re right there,” Banchero said. “We’re right there with all those (elite teams in the East). I remember last year, we started the year off as a top-two, top-three seed and everybody thought it was a fluke. Everybody thought we were going to be a play-in team and drop out the top of the East. We finished strong and got the fifth seed and had a chance to really grab the two seed at the end of the season. We were right there last year. We got better this year. I got better; all of us got better. We got some new pieces that are going to help a lot. We’re trying to make some noise. We should easily be a top-four, top-three team, and have a chance to win the East.”
Can the Magic get the edge over the Knicks in the standings next season?
Only three games separated the Knicks and Magic in the standings last season. However, many things will be different in 2024-25. For one, both teams will look different entering the campaign. Notably, the Knicks’ addition of Mikal Bridges alone trumps the Magic’s most impactful offseason acquisitions, being two-time NBA champion Kentavious Caldwell-Pope.
Orlando has maturation going for them, with their young nucleus having a year’s worth of successful regular season and playoff experience under their belt. However, the Knicks have two of the 10 best perimeter defenders in all of basketball in Bridges and OG Anunoby, and an offensive unit with three surefire 20-point-per-game scorers in Bridges, and All-Stars Jalen Brunson and Julius Randle to only one for the Magic in Banchero.
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Beyond this, the rest of the East got much better too, including the Philadelphia 76ers’ addition of All-Star Paul George). In addition, Orlando has a tough opening slate to begin the upcoming campaign, as they’ll face the Indiana Pacers twice, the West’s No. 1 overall seed Oklahoma City Thunder, the reigning Western Conference champion Dallas Mavericks, Miami Heat, and Zion Williamson’s New Orleans Pelicans in six of their first 10 games, not to mention their meeting a Memphis Grizzlies team set to welcome back star point guard Ja Morant.
They also finish the year with stiff competition, including contests against LeBron James and Anthony Davis’ Los Angeles Lakers and the defending champion Boston Celtics in two of their final 11 matchups.
Banchero will need to be ready to deal with the improved roster that the Knicks will field next year, the elite competition also gunning for the crown out East, and the challenges that their schedule poses. The East is no longer the little brother of the league’s two conferences. There are legitimately six teams that could advance to the NBA Finals in 2024-25.
The Knicks, who dominated the Magic 3-1 in their season series last time around, look well-positioned to sweep them next season, with their best roster on paper in over a decade. The Magic will surely be a threat in the conference, but the Knicks should feel good about getting the upper hand in the win-loss column over them and a host of other contenders in 2024-25.
