Chris Banchero is expected to roll out the red carpet for his cousin, Paolo Banchero of the Orlando Magic, when the country hosts the FIBA Basketball World Cup from 25 August to 10 September.
Banchero, the star point guard of Meralco in the Philippine Basketball Association, told Daily Tribune that they are all excited to see Paolo, the reigning National Basketball Association Rookie of the Year who will banner the United States in the prestigious 32-nation tournament.
Team USA is bunched in Group C together with Jordan, Greece and New Zealand. The Americans are assigned to play their preliminary matches at the Mall of Asia Arena.
“We’re all excited, especially my son who is looking forward to see the best players in the world play in the World Cup. My family will be there to welcome Paolo and we look forward to see him play there,” Banchero said.
Aside from Paolo, also seeing action for Team USA are NBA Defensive Player of the Year Jaren Jackson of the Memphis Grizzlies, Brandon Ingram of the New Orleans Pelicans, Anthony Edwards of the Minnesota Timberwolves, Austin Reaves of the Los Angeles Lakers, Tyrese Haliburton of the Indiana Pacers, Jalen Brunson of the New York Knicks, Cam Johnson and Mikal Bridges of the Brooklyn Nets, Bobby Portis of the Milwaukee Bucks, and Walker Kessler of the Utah Jazz.
With the absence of marquee players like Jason Tatum of the Boston Celtics, Anthony Davis of the Lakers and veteran forward Kevin Durant and Devin Booker of the Phoenix Suns, Paolo is expected to carry the scoring cudgels for the Americans, who are looking to regain the world title.
“I think a lot will be on his shoulders with this kind of team they’re bringing with him being the Rookie of the Year,” Banchero said.
“But I think this will be also good for the fans as they will be able to see the rising stars of the NBA and get to know some of the good players from different countries.”
The Banchero family has rich basketball tradition.
Aside from Banchero, Paolo’s mother, Rhonda, was also a star player in the US where she emerged as the all-time leading scorer in the Washington Huskies history, scoring 2,948 points.
Rhonda went on to see action for the Sacramento Monarchs in the Women’s NBA.
Prior to joining Team USA, Paolo, an American-Italian, was also being wooed to play in Italy.
Banchero, however, wasn’t surprised with the decision of his cousin since the US offers more opportunity to display his talent.
“I’m not surprised at all that he chose Team USA and I’m sure he had his reasons to play there,” Banchero said, looking forward to a family reunion at the sidelines of the World Cup.
