Banchero is unique, first and foremost because of his family. His father, Mario Banchero, and his uncle both played on the University of Washington men's football team. Banchero inherited his father's lineage and officially accepted Italian citizenship in February 2020, and competed internationally for the Italian men's basketball team.
Banchero's mother, Rhonda, was also a member of the University of Washington in her early years, but she played for the university's women's basketball team. By the time she left the school, Rhonda was the all-time leading scorer in women's basketball and was selected in the 2000 WNBA Draft.
But she later mixed in the secondary league, also went to overseas leagues for gold, and is now a girls' basketball coach at Seattle's Holy Names Academy High School.
While playing different sports at the University of Washington, that doesn't stop Mario and Rhonda from falling in love. In the end, Paul became the love child of the couple. Paul was born in Seattle on November 12, 2002.
The father gave his son a good body (2.08 meters tall, weighing 113 kilograms), and the mother taught him the art of basketball, which was undoubtedly important to Paul's future development.
Under the influence of his parents, Banchero also became a sports athlete. When he was just 15 months old, Banchero was 0.91 meters tall.
As a child, Banchero had a wide range of interests, including basketball, football and track and field.
Later, at the Rotary Boys and Girls Club in Seattle, Banchero continued to play basketball with his mother, and his height soared to 1.96 meters. Due to his outstanding size, Banchero was selected to the All-American Top 50 eighth grade player list in both basketball and football.
Banchero then attended Odia High School in Seattle. He started out as a backup quarterback for the school's football team, and also made the varsity basketball team, which won state championships in Washington State.
On the varsity basketball team, Banchero averaged a double-double (14.1 points and 10.2 rebounds) in his freshman season, and he led the team to a state championship and was named MVP in his sophomore season. In his senior year, he led the team to the state championship game, and with 22.6 points, 11 rebounds, 3.7 assists and 1.6 blocks, was named the Washington State Senior of the Year and the National Senior Player of the Year, and was invited to the McDonald's All-American Game and the Jordan Brand Classic.
Not surprisingly, Banchero is rated a five-star high school senior and is considered one of the top high school seniors in the class of 2021. Invitations have been pouring in, with the University of Kentucky, the University of Tennessee and the University of Washington all considered top candidates.
But in the end, Banchero unexpectedly chose Duke University to become a member of the "Blue Devils." He also became the second Top 10 high school student in the United States to join Duke in 2021, the other being AJ Griffin at No. 9.
Bancello has not yet donned the Duke uniform, NBA draft expert Kevin Flarty predicted that he is expected to become the best freshman performance, future success in the NBA. When Duke coach K talked about how to train Banchero, he said it would be the same as the way he had previously trained Zion.
Banchero didn't disappoint, either. In his debut at Duke, he scored 22 points in a win over Kentucky. Soon after, he was named ACC Freshman of the Week. In a 107-81 win over Citadel University on Nov. 23, Banchero added 28 points and eight rebounds.
When it comes to Banchero these days, it's natural to mention the battle between him and Chet Holmgren for the No. 1 overall pick. The duo are so popular that their first NCAA matchup sold out early in the morning.
Born on May 1, 2002, Holmgren is 2.13 meters tall, weighs 88 kilograms, plays center, and is currently studying at Gonzaga University.
In high school, he also had a brilliant resume, was elected the All-American senior high School, was selected to the All-American team, was also elected Mr. Basketball of Minnesota, and led the United States men's basketball team to win the U-19 World Cup gold medal and was elected MVP. In his senior season, Holmgren averaged 21 points and 12.3 rebounds per game.
Holmgren is considered to have what it takes to be an outstanding contemporary center. He can open space, he can protect the frame, he can help defend, he has excellent control of the ball and run and jump ability in the same position, he can attack from high up, and he can cut empty. His template was determined to be Durant.
The concern for Holmgren is that his body is too thin and difficult to gain weight, and he is not able to fight. In contrast, Banchero can be called a combination of strength and skill, that is, excellent fighting force, seasoned ball style, strong body, both low kill also has a certain range, but also can respond, but the arm span is not excellent (2.15 meters), explosive power and speed are flat.
His templates are numerous; Brand, Boozer, Wendell Carter Jr. and Jabari Parker have all been mentioned.
It is reported that NBA scouts have reminded those teams who do not know how to choose: if they need to fight, Banchero can immediately put on the game; But if the five-year restructuring of the lineup, Holmgren's development prospects are more promising.
