Magic's Paolo Banchero Talks Pickup Games with Notre Dame's Riley Leonard at Duke

Orlando Magic star Paolo Banchero reminisced Friday on X about playing pickup basketball at Duke with Notre Dame quarterback Riley Leonard.

"We used to get it in at the indoor football field too," Banchero wrote on X.

Former Duke standout Trevor Keels, who now plays for the G League's Iowa Wolves, chimed in:

The players were responding to a recent clip of Leonard talking about how he used to play with the Blue Devils basketball team during his time at Duke.

Leonard said he would be best known in his hometown in Alabama not for his work as a quarterback but for his previous reputation as a basketball player.

"I like to think that I could [walk on at Duke]," Leonard said in a recent clip shared by Robert Griffin III. "I didn't necessarily have the handles, though. Because to have handles, you've got to be in the gym, all day, every day.

"My class, when I got there in the summer, I was with Paolo Banchero and them. So we used to go Cameron, late at night, and hoop. Which is hope. So I was always trying to sneak in there, and play with them boys, and see if I could really prove myself."

Leonard continued: "That's one of my biggest regrets. I wish I would've hit Coach K up my freshman year."

When asked if he had ever scored on Banchero, Leonard answered: "Paolo's different. No, I would hold my own, I'll put it that way. I genuinely think I would have held my own. But yeah, I miss hoops."

While Banchero was playing his way into becoming the first pick of the 2022 NBA Draft during his single season at Duke, Leonard was mainly serving as a backup to Gunnar Holmberg.

He served two seasons as the team's primary starter before entering the transfer portal following the departure of Mike Elko at the end of the 2023 season.

Leonard and the Fighting Irish are now preparing to play Ohio State in the national championship game. Backup quarterback Steve Angeli briefly took over as Leonard went through concussion protocol during the team's semifinal win over Penn State, but Leonard is expected to return Monday for Notre Dame's title bid.