In an exclusive interview with Sky Sport, the 4-time NBA champion (three rings with Jordan and Pippen’s Chicago Bulls, one with Kobe and Shaq’s Lakers) talks about Paolo Banchero and the Orlando Magic, a franchise he knows good for playing in it for 5 seasons (also reaching another NBA Finals). And then he reveals, surprisingly, who is the NBA player of today who most resembles him
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After winning three NBA titles with Jordan’s Chicago Bulls in the early 1990s, Horace Grant moved on to the Orlando Magic – those of Shaq and Penny, those capable of reaching the NBA Finals in 1995 and eliminating the Bulls they were welcoming back to the team Michael Jordan (after his baseball stint). To the microphones of Sky Sport Grant today agrees to talk about his former team, the talent of Paolo Banchero and the youth of the Magic, but also Orlando’s opponents in this NBA Sundays (the Boston Celtics). Here’s what he told us.
Your Orlando Magic were a young team but already capable of being successful: what made it so?
“I think what made that team a winning team was Shaq’s maturity [O’Neal], despite being so young – and so are Penny Hardaway, Nick Anderson and Dennis Scott. The year before I joined them they had made the playoffs but had been eliminated by the Indiana Pacers [3-0 al primo turno, ndr]. I think my arrival, thanks to my winning experience – given my past experience in Chicago, alongside champions like Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen and all the others – I think I brought that little ingredient that they needed to be able to make their way even in the playoffs”.
Even the Orlando Magic of today – just like that team – are very young, roster in hand… What do you think of them?
“They have a lot of young talent in the squad. They took the first choice, Paolo [Banchero], coming out of Duke, and it was a really good call because he has already proven that he deserves that call; they have Cole Anthony, who I think is a great point guard; they have the youngster who was also a first overall pick, in Philly [Markelle Fultz], who had all those shooting problems early in his career — and the Magic coaching staff did great at giving him time to settle in; there’s Wendell Carter Jr., another great piece of their roster – and I could go on. I think they just need to build a good camaraderie in the locker room and develop some maturity, on and off the pitch, to really become a force in the East.”
When he played he was 2.08m for 97 kilos, and his role was that of a power forward. Today Paolo Banchero is 2.08, he weighs 113 kilos and yet he is a sort of “point forward”. What does this tell us about the evolution of the game in recent years?
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“I always say that the same thing happened in the NBA that happens in our everyday life: the evolution we are witnessing is something incredible. Players of 2.13 shoot from three points and put the ball on the ground as if they were point guard: this is the level of the NBA today, and it’s a very high level. My very personal opinion is that today’s young talents are much stronger physically, a little faster and certainly are able to handle the ball better than a lot of players of my era”.
What do you think has changed the game more, the big men’s ability to play from outside or the three-point shot?
“I would say it’s a combination of both factors. However, the three-point shot was already a weapon then, with great players like Reggie Miller or Ray Allen, but the evolution of the big men, and their ability to handle the ball in this way – combined with the three-point shooting and the adoption of the Eurostep – is truly incredible. Just look at a big man like Joel Embiid, and his way of attacking with the Euro-step, or Giannis [Antetokounmpo]who despite being 2.10 tall treats the ball like a guard”.
Let’s go back to Paolo Banchero: how would you describe his game?
“Paolo is a beast! He knows how to shoot, he knows how to handle the ball, he is physically strong and has a basketball intelligence that is truly incredible for a freshman. Bringing all these characteristics together in one player is something that will make him a All-Star for a great number of years.”
Four NBA titles and another Finals contest – she certainly knows what it’s like to win. What do you think of these Boston Celtics and what chance do you think we have to go all the way and win?
“When they reached the Finals last year they did it by overcoming a really rough start to the season. When you have a superstar on the rise, an all-pro, like Jayson Tatum, the NBA’s best defensive player in Marcus Smart and a player like Jaylen Brown “Those are the three milestones that can take you all the way. And I strongly believe that if they continue to play as they are doing, staying away from injuries, they can come back to play in the final – I have no doubts about that.”
With the Bulls, at the beginning of his career, you lost several playoff series against Detroit before being able to beat them and then win. How much can losing last year against Golden State “help” these Celtics reach the title?
“Nobody likes to lose, but if when that happens you can learn how to not make certain mistakes again then you can improve further – and in their case go back to the finals and this time win. At the time – and perhaps still today, as a member of the Chicago Bulls – we didn’t like to give too much credit to the Detroit Pistons’ merits but having to face them all those years has taught us to use our heads and not just our physical skills. I think if Boston can do the same, then the Celtics they will be able to win one or more titles”.
Who is the Horace Grant of the NBA today?
“In my day the game was more physical and we ‘power forwards’ were asked to do a couple of dribbles at the most and then pass the ball back to the point guard: we certainly couldn’t dribble, and even less shoot from three points – that was really excluded. For this reason it is difficult to compare my game to that of some players today but if I had to choose one I would name Serge Ibaka”.
