Paolo Banchero reveals instant reaction when Magic acquired Desmond Bane

The Orlando Magic had one of the best summers in the East this offseason. It was headlined by the Magic making a seismic trade to acquire star guard Desmond Bane away from the Memphis Grizzlies.

The blockbuster was the first big league-wide trade of the summer, taking many by surprise -- including star forward Paolo Banchero.

“I just didn’t believe it,” Banchero said, according to The Athletic's Josh Robbins. “I had a feeling we were going to make a trade. But I felt like there were some guys that were kind of up on the list of who we would maybe trade for, at least in my head, and Desmond Bane was not one of them.

“So when I heard that one, I was like, ‘Desmond Bane!’ I was like, ‘S—, he’s a hell of a player.’ I was excited. Obviously, he was in the West, so (we didn’t) play him too much, but every time we played Memphis, man, he’d give it to us. And I just liked his whole demeanor and how he played, shooting the 3.”

Desmond Bane will make life easier for Paolo Banchero:

Bane has been one of the best 3-point shooters since entering the NBA in 2020. Over the last five seasons, Bane's 41.0 3-point percentage is the fourth-best in the NBA -- trailing only Grayson Allen (42.0), Norman Powell (41.7) and Mike Conley (41.2) -- of the 79 players who have attempted at least 1,500 3-pointers.

Meanwhile, over the last three seasons, Orlando's been the NBA's worst team from beyond the arc, canning just 33.8 percent of its triples. Last year, the Magic posted a league-worst 31.8 percent from deep, nearly two percentage points worse than the next-worst team (Wizards -- 33.5) and the worst 3-point percentage since 2015-16.

One player may not fix the entire problem. But Bane will unquestionably help, as will Tyus Jones and Jase Richardson, among others.

He's going to make life easier for Banchero and the Magic offense not only as a floor spacer, but as a secondary ballhandler and playmaker. The creation burden will not be solely placed on Franz Wagner's shoulders when Banchero's not on the floor. Bane adds a premier scoring threat that has to be accounted for at all times, a dimension the Magic haven't quite had outside of Banchero and Wagner over the last three seasons.

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