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Draymond Green Praises Paolo Banchero: “He’s One Of The Ones”

About a month ago, Jabari Smith Jr. was the favorite to go number one in the 2022 NBA draft and had been for the previous months, including most of the draft day.

It all came different, as the Orlando Magic shocked the NBA world by selecting Paolo Banchero with their first overall draft pick.

Banchero wanted to prove himself as the No. 1 pick entering summer league, and did just that. He played incredibly well and mature, which led to the Magic shutting him down early, as they’ve seen enough and wanted to eliminate the risk of a potential injury .

Other players seem to also have recognized the great display of Banchero. NBA champion Draymond Green now had nothing but praise for the rookie, when he spoke about him on his podcast ‘The Draymond Green Show’:

“Paolo Banchero, I think, is one of the ones. And the reason I think Paolo is one of them guys is because of the things that he did on the basketball court that were not scoring. … I hope that organization is ready for that player because that player is a winner. That player, he cares. I mean, he was out there playing them Summer League games like he was playing in the NBA Finals. With that type of intensity. That is a winner right before your eyes.”

“That is a winner right before your eyes” ️

—@Money23Green says Paolo Banchero is HIM pic.twitter.com/biDDTi5MGS

— The Volume (@TheVolumeSports) July 14, 2022