Paolo Banchero isn’t easing into the new season with modest goals.
The Orlando Magic forward said his target goes all the way to the NBA Finals, and he made it clear he expects more than a nice regular season run. When asked about his individual and team goals, Banchero put it plainly: “My main goal this year, outside of Winning the Eastern Conference, is just to go out there and Dominate every single night.”
That kind of statement fits the tone around Orlando right now. Banchero has spent the summer sharpening his jumper, tightening his work around the rim and pushing his body to look as athletic and bouncy as ever. With Sean Sweeney taking over as head coach and reshaping the team’s gameplan, the Magic are heading into the season with a fresh voice but largely the same core.
That continuity has been one of the biggest wins for Jeff Weltman and Anthony Parker’s front office. Orlando has built a roster that is both deep and young, and the organization has leaned hard into internal development. The idea is straightforward: pour resources into the players already in the building, keep improving the skills they already have, and make sure those tools fit what the team needs to win.
Weltman said the coaching change has opened the door for that process to be even more organized. “Anytime you have a change as impactful as a new coach it presents so much opportunity to create new communication streams.We’ve been setting up task forces to make sure things don’t fall between the cracks.”
Wendell Carter Jr., now in his 9th NBA season and 7th with the Magic, said the mindset inside the locker room doesn’t depend on outside opinions or preseason rankings. “It’s us, it’s us, it’s about us.We don’t care where nobody has us ranked, what people think…Chips gonna fall where they may, but guys are in a good spot mentally and physically.”
Banchero, entering Year 4, is looking for the kind of clean run that lets this group show what it can really be. Injuries have been part of the backdrop, and he wants better luck on that front so the team can put its best version on the floor and show how strong it can be as a unit.
He also said his role under Sweeney isn’t changing in any major way. “We talk every day.
I wouldn’t say I have a new role. I think my role’s pretty set in stone.We just talk, communicate, he tells me what he expects out of me.The communication’s been very good… high-level”
For Banchero, the focus is bigger than just taking another step as an individual. He wants to blend the work he’s put in this summer with the structure of the new staff and keep pushing Orlando toward something larger. The message from him and the rest of the Magic is clear: they believe they can play with anybody, and they’re aiming high.
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Even so, his place in Magic history is hard to ignore. Vucevic sits third on the teams all-time scoring list and first in field goals made, numbers that underscore how much he already means to the organization. Now the question is less about what he has done in Orlando and more about how this second stint will be defined, especially with the team trying to build something bigger than any single players record book. [Read more 🡒]
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Wagners view of the season is pretty simple: the Magic have a chance to move past the first round, but only if they make the most of it. He noted the new coaching staff and the need to maximize what the group can become, which gives this year a different kind of weight around the margins. For a team trying to turn potential into progress, the challenge may end up being less about belief than about capitalizing when the opening is there. [Read more 🡒]