The Seattle Seahawks are enjoying the celebration that comes with one of the more surprising Super Bowl runs in recent memory. Despite entering the year with middling expectations, the Seahawks turned themselves into a superpower squad that won Super Bowl LX. Among the team’s biggest fans is Orlando Magic All-Star Paolo Banchero, who was understandably thrilled to see Seattle win it all.
A Seattle native himself, Banchero has been a Seahawks fan for as long as he can remember, and he closely followed the team throughout the 2025 campaign, even attending a pair of games before the 2025-26 NBA season got underway. While Banchero is always supporting his team, he recently admitted that he did not think the team was a championship-caliber squad entering the year.
Paolo Banchero Drops Truth Bomb on Seahawks’ Super Bowl Run
Banchero was the No. 1 overall pick in the 2022 NBA Draft, and he’s turned himself into one of the top up-and-coming basketball stars in the world. The 2025-26 campaign didn’t exactly go the Magic’s way, as they will have to earn a spot in the playoffs through the NBA’s Play-In Tournament as the No. 8 seed in the Eastern Conference, but Banchero turned in another impressive individual season (22.2 PPG, 8.4 RPG, 5.2 APG, 45.9 FG%).
Before he found his way to the pros, Banchero got his start in Seattle, which is where he was born and raised. While his basketball skills have taken him all over the country, Banchero still has ties to Seattle, and he frequently returns to his hometown when he isn’t in the middle of the NBA season.
Seattle hasn’t always had a basketball team in the NBA, as the Supersonics were relocated to Oklahoma City when Banchero was very young. The city has always had football, though, with Banchero becoming a big fan of the Seahawks. He anxiously watched the team’s championship run, and while he was thrilled with the outcome, he admitted that he didn’t initially believe that Seattle was a Super Bowl contender.
“I was ecstatic,” Banchero said in an interview with Landon Buford. “I knew they were good, but I’d be lying if I said the vibe, both for me and the fans, felt like we were heading to the Super Bowl … It was just dope to see them on their journey. Then, to put on the kind of show they did in the playoffs was super exciting for my family and me. I haven’t felt that kind of excitement in probably 10–12 years, so that was really special.”
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GettyThe Seattle Seahawks have officially announced significant news for the 2026-27 season, with six months left to go.
The Seahawks made believers of everyone in 2025, including Banchero. And while winning the Super Bowl is nice, this team believes it can go on another run in 2026. With the majority of last season’s team returning to town, Banchero and the rest of Seattle’s fanbase likely will have higher expectations when it takes the field next.
As Banchero himself knows, winning in the playoffs is difficult to do, no matter what sport you play. And after winning a title last year, the Seahawks are going to enter the new season with a big target on their backs. This team loves to be counted out, though, and who knows, maybe that’s the sort of fuel they need to repeat as Super Bowl champions next year.
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