Ex-NBA Champion Claims Paolo Banchero Has Been the Biggest Disappointment in the League

Kendrick Perkins believes that Orlando Magic star Paolo Banchero has performed well below expectations so far this season.

Ex-NBA Champion Claims Paolo Banchero Has Been the Biggest Disappointment in the League

Kendrick Perkins on Paolo Banchero (Image credits - Firstsportz)

In Short
  • Paolo Banchero has been labeled the biggest disappointment in the NBA by Kendrick Perkins.
  • Banchero is averaging his lowest points per game this season since his rookie year.
  • Iman Shumpert argues that Banchero is being scapegoated for the Magic's struggles due to a lack of support.

It appears that the Orlando Magic and Paolo Banchero have hit a bit of a roadblock this season. After consecutive first-round defeats to the Cleveland Cavaliers and Boston Celtics in 2024 and 2025, respectively, it was expected that the 2025-26 campaign would be the season where the Magic would take the next step.

Unfortunately, that has not been the case. One of the main reasons for their disappointment this season is the lack of improvement in Paolo Banchero‘s game. Drafted by the Magic as the number on pick in the 2022 NBA draft, Banchero was touted as the face of the franchise and the club’s first superstar caliber player since Dwight Howard.

The expectations were sky high, and it looked like Banchero may be the answer to the Magic’s playoff woes. In the offseason, Banchero signed a five-year, $239 million contract extension with the Magic. The 23-year-old even set a high bar for himself after winning the Rookie of the Year award in 2023 and earning his maiden All-Star selection in 2024. However, Banchero has not been selected as an All-Star in 2025 and 2026.

Former NBA champion and ESPN analyst Kendrick Perkins is known for not shying away from speaking his mind. The big man took to ESPN’s NBA Today to hit Banchero with a harsh label.

I will go a little further and say Paolo Banchero has been the biggest disappointment player-wise. When we came into the season, we had high expectations for this young man. His ceiling, we were talking about being one of the top five young players under 25. He has taken three or four steps backwards. I’m starting to question whether he is their franchise guy moving forward.

With Franz Wagner ruled out indefinitely, a lot more will be expected from Banchero. It has been a slow start to the season for the forward, but if he could find his form in the second half of the regular season, the Magic will have something to say in a wide-open Eastern Conference.

Iman Shumpert backs Paolo Banchero amid Orlando Magic criticism

Paolo Banchero is having his lowest points per game this season since his rookie year. The Magic forward is currently averaging 21.3 points, 8.4 rebounds and 4.8 assists in 43 appearances this season.

With all the criticism surrounding Banchero, former NBA player Iman Shumpert came in support of the young star and pointed to the lack of structure around him in Orlando on his podcast.

Paolo Banchero
Paolo Banchero (Image credits – Sky Sports)

They don’t have a roster that’s set up for him. It’s not like he is paired with somebody that could just deliver him the ball like they don’t have Chris Paul over there. They play some cool basketball. But their mission is not to get him going. He’s not the problem over there.

Shumpert believes that Banchero is being made a scapegoat for the Magic’s struggles this season. They have not surrounded their star player with the right pieces around him. Combined with frequent injury concerns, it has been a difficult 2025-26 campaign for Banchero and the Magic so far.

Cade Cunningham is the best former number one pick in the East 

Till last season, it appeared that it was the Magic, not the Detroit Pistons, who had hit on the best number one pick over recent history in the East. In the 2023-24 season, Banchero was named as an All-Star while Cade Cunningham and the Pistons were the laughing stock of the league as they had gone through a 28-game losing streak and were the worst team in the NBA.

However, a lot has changed since. The Pistons, led by Cunningham, find themselves at the top of the Eastern Conference standings with a 40-13 record. Cunningham’s performances this season have seen him in the MVP conversation, and the guard may have a shot at the award.

Meanwhile, the Magic sit at seventh and are in the play-in spots at the moment. With still a third of the season to go, Banchero still has time to turn his and the Magic’s season around. But for now, Cunningham is the best former number one pick in the Eastern Conference.  

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