This weekend sees the Orlando Magic represented by Franz Wagner and Paolo Banchero at the All Star Weekend in Salt Lake City, Utah.
Franz Wagner and Paolo Banchero have become the cornerstones of this young Orlando Magic team.
For Wagner, this will be his second straight NBA All-Star Weekend trip. Last year, as a rookie, he also participated in the Rising Stars game. Playing for Team (Rick) Barry, Franz made the championship-winning free throw. The 8th pick in the 2021 NBA Draft, Wagner is averaging 18.9 points, 3.9 rebounds and 3.5 assists this season. He is shooting 48.4% from the field and 36.6% from 3-point range.
Banchero is the red hot favourite to become Rookie Of The Year. The number 1 pick in the 2022 Draft became only the third No. 1 overall pick in NBA history to score 20-plus points in his first six games. He has scored 20-plus-point so far 29 this season, four times reaching the 30-point mark. He is averaging 19.9 points, 6.6 rebounds and 3.6 assists per game. Banchero is shooting 41.9% from the field.
Rising Stars Challenge – Franz Wagner and Paolo Banchero
The Event
Date: Friday, February 17th – (commencing at 2am Saturday 18th here in the U.K.)
Location: The Vivint Arena, Salt Lake City, Utah
TV and live stream: Sky Sports Main Event HD, Sky Sports Arena HD and NBA League Pass
Four teams will compete in a three-game tournament.
All games will be played to a Final Target Score.
Game 1 and Game 2 will be played to a Final Target Score of 40 points.
The final game (to determine the tournament champion) will be played to a Target Score of 25.
- Game 1: Team A vs. Team B
- Game 2: Team C vs. Team D
- Game 3: Winner of Game 1 vs. Winner of Game 2
The Teams
Former NBA All-Stars Pau Gasol, Joakim Noah and Deron Williams coach the three NBA Rising-Star teams, while former Sixth Man of the Year Jason Terry will lead the G League team.
Pau Gasol selected Paolo Banchero with the No. 1 pick. Team Williams selected Franz Wagner with the No. 2 pick. Joakim Noah selected Evan Mobley with the No. 3 pick and had the first pick of the second round, taking Josh Giddey.
Team Pau
- Paolo Banchero (Magic)
- Benedict Mathurin (Pacers)
- Jaden Ivey (Pistons)
- Scottie Barnes (Raptors)
- Jose Alvarado (Pelicans)
- Keegan Murray (Kings)
- Andrew Nembhard (Pacers)
Team Deron
- Franz Wagner (Magic)
- Jalen Green (Rockets) *injured will not play
- Alperen Sengun (Rockets)
- Trey Murphy III (Pelicans)
- AJ Griffin (Hawks)
- Bones Hyland (Nuggets)
- Walker Kessler (Jazz)
- Ayo Dosunmu (Bulls) ** replaces the injured Jalen Green
Team Joakim
- Evan Mobley (Cavaliers)
- Josh Giddey (Thunder)
- Jalen Williams (Thunder)
- Jeremy Sochan (Spurs)
- Quentin Grimes (Knicks)
- Jabari Smith Jr. (Rockets)
- Jalen Duren (Pistons) * injured will not play
- Tari Eason (Rockets) ** replaces the injured Jalen Duren
Team Jason
- Sidy Cissoko, G League Ignite
- Scoot Henderson, G League Ignite
- Mojave King, G League Ignite
- Kenneth Lofton Jr., Memphis Hustle
- Mac McClung, Delaware Blue Coats
- Leonard Miller, G League Ignite
- Scotty Pippen Jr., South Bay Lakers
All Star Saturday Night – Paolo Banchero
Date: Saturday, February 18th – (commencing at 1am Sunday 19th here in the U.K.)
Location: The Vivint Arena, Salt Lake City, Utah
TV and live stream: Sky Sports Main Event HD, Sky Sports Arena HD and NBA League Pass
Saturday night at All Star is home to the Slam Dunk Contest, the 3-Point Contest and the Skills Challenge. Paolo Banchero takes part in the Skills Challenge on Team Rookies
Team Antetokounmpo
Giannis Antetokounmpo, Milwaukee Bucks
Thanasis Antetokounmpo, Milwaukee Bucks
Alex Antetokounmpo, Wisconsin Herd
Team Jazz
Jordan Clarkson, Utah Jazz
Walker Kessler, Utah Jazz
Collin Sexton, Utah Jazz
Team Rookies
Paolo Banchero, Orlando Magic
Jaden Ivey, Detroit Pistons
Jabari Smith Jr., Houston Rockets
Hopefully this is the start of the Franz Wagner and Paolo Banchero partnership at the All-Star Weekend. As the plaudits continue to grow for this pairing, next time it could easily be the All-Star Game itself.
