Paolo Banchero gives Jalen Brunson his flowers after leading the Knicks to a championship

1 hour ago 1

With the New York Knicks winning the 2026 NBA championship, it is fairly normal to have people praising them for their success. Most of the praise is rightfully given to Jalen Brunson, the team's superstar captain. The praise is not exclusive to the media either, because other star players are weighing in.

Among them is Orlando Magic All-Star Paolo Banchero. He is still a young player, so he is looking for players he feels can inspire him. Brunson is among those names, which is further proof that the Knicks' superstar has gained a lot of respect for how he led the team to their first championship in 52 years.

Paolo Banchero praises Jalen Brunson's contributions to the Knicks' championship

Over the past few years, Banchero has shown that he is a player with tons of potential who can lead the Magic to the promised land. Unfortunately, that has not happened just yet, but there is a lot of time left since he is a young player.

He is also getting inspiration from the Magic's opponents, which include the Knicks. Seeing the Knicks showcase that the Eastern Conference can compete against the Western Conference gives plenty of hope to players like Banchero and his teammates.

MORE: PJ Tucker sees Jalen Brunson as the better player over Shai Gilgeous-Alexander

Banchero has immense respect for the Magic's opponents, but the NBA Finals showed that he also has a lot of respect for Brunson. Since the 2026 Finals MVP is not the biggest player, he was often overlooked. That should not be the case anymore because he just led his team to end a 52-year championship drought.

"He’s a hell of a basketball player; he plays to win every night. He’s a hell of a leader, one of the harder workers that I’ve been around. I think it’s good for the game for a guy like him to win Finals MVP and lead his team to a championship," Banchero said about Brunson on The Stephen A. Smith Show.

Moving forward, Banchero will be inspired by star players like Brunson. It will be imporatant to remember because Banchero has proven that he has the talent, he just needs the supporting cast behind him and Franz Wagner to step up and help them succeed.