'Natural Fit'? ESPN Analysts Believe It Would Be 'Hard to Pass On' Paolo Banchero for Rockets
On Tuesday night, the Houston Rockets left the stage at the NBA Lottery a little disappointed after being passed up for the No. 1 pick not once, but twice.
First by the Oklahoma City Thunder, who landed at No. 2, and next by the Orlando Magic, who ultimately took home the No. 1 prize.
However, thanks to the needs of the teams in front of them, most experts believe the Rockets still have a very good chance to get their guy in Duke Blue Devils forward, Paolo Banchero.
And according to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski and Mike Schmitz, Banchero would be a 'natural fit' in the Rockets system.
“I can see Paolo (Banchero) being a natural fit,” Woj said on the podcast. “It fits where they are, positionally. Jalen Green is going to have the ball in his hands, and you can see Paolo complimenting him.”
Given how a number of mock drafts have looked in recent weeks, there’s a very good chance the Rockets could end up selecting Paolo Banchero with the No. 3 pick.
Banchero was the best player on a Duke team that made its first Final Four in seven years, the longest drought of Coach Mike Krzyzewski's career before he retired at season's end.
He averaged 17.2 points per game to go with 7.8 rebounds in his lone season with the Blue Devils before declaring for the draft, and he's projected to be one of the first three players to be selected in this year's draft.
“Banchero is such a talent," Schmitz added. "You can add a guy who was a potential No. 1 pick at times this year. Watching Banchero push in transition and Jalen Green catching lobs, that’s exciting. It’d be really, really hard to pass on that.”
One way or another, we will see who the Rockets end up with when the draft officially goes down on June 23.
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