Mario Banchero was watching just like the rest of us.
When Paolo Banchero hit the game-winning shot over the Detroit Pistons with 0.8 seconds left on Saturday night, Orlando Magic fans everywhere were thrilled.
But possibly no one was happier than Mario Banchero, father of the Magic All-Star.
After Banchero sent the Magic to the locker room with the victory, Mario tweeted out a single emoji that said it all:
While his father was fired up, Banchero wasn’t impressed with his play on Saturday night, saying, “I played terrible.”
Battling through illness, he finished the game 5-17 with 15 points and five rebounds for the Magic.
In his postgame press conference, Banchero praised his Magic teammates, giving them credit for believing in him despite playing poorly (by his standards) while dealing with illness.
“Paolo Banchero mentioned the teams trust in him with the game on the line ‘got me emotional’ ‘I been feeling terrible past couple days, just battling being sick… for my teammates and coaches to have confidence in me reassuring me telling me I was gonna be good’”
Clearly under the weather in his postgame interviews, Banchero had been questionable for the Magic against the Cleveland Cavaliers on Thursday before ultimately suiting up to play.
Assuming Mario watches all of Banchero’s games, he’s seen some good basketball from the Orlando Magic this season. The team is now in sixth place in the NBA Eastern Conference standings at 32-25. Clearly, their looking to make some noise in the playoffs this season after languishing in the lottery for several years.
Up next for the Magic – The team takes on the Atlanta Hawks on Sunday.
About the Author
Peter Sampson has been covering all things sports (with a focus on the Portland Trail Blazers) for more than a decade, most recently hosting “The Pulse with Peter Sampson” in Afternoon Drive for 750 The Game. Prior to that, he hosted an NBA wrap-up show that aired immediately at the conclusion of every Trail Blazers game. Peter had previous stops at Blazer’s Edge and XRAY.FM – where his show “Blazer’s Edge Radio” was named “Portland’s Best Sports Radio” in the 2017 Willamette Week reader’s poll. When he’s not telling the stories of your favorite sports team, Peter can be found recording the next garage rock classic in his basement studio, whipping up an authentic Italian meal in the kitchen, or trying to figure out the appeal of Minecraft with his 9-year-old son in the living room.
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