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Duke basketball great Paolo Banchero reaches rarefied rookie air

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Until Wednesday night, Thursday ESPN Stats & Info, only two NBA players in the past 40 years had scored 20 or more points in at least 20 of their first 26 games. One was UNC basketball alum Michael Jordan with the Chicago Bulls in 1984. And the other was Duke basketball product Zion Williamson with the New Orleans Pelicans in 2020.

Now, that exclusive group includes a second NBA Blue Devil in Paolo Banchero, who, like Williamson, went No. 1 overall in the NBA Draft following an ACC Rookie of the Year campaign at Duke.

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