Paolo Banchero was on such a good trajectory to play for Team Italy during the FIBA World Cup. The Orlando Magic's Rookie of the Year acquired his Italian citizenship during the pandemic and was ecstatic to play for the team. A verbal commitment even got the Italian Basketball Federation president Gianni Petrucci hyped.

However, this took a turn for the worst as Paolo Banchero announced his decision for the upcoming FIBA World Cup in the Philippines. He disclosed that he is going to play for Team USA. The decision made the Italian Basketball Federation understandably mad, per Alessandro Luigi Maggi of Sportnado.

“Betrayal is a big word, in sports these things happen and personally I’m used to it. I consider it a joke,” Gianni Petrucci said.

The Orlando Magic star also caused a lot of confusion within Team Italy. He visited Milan and was supposed to attend a meeting with the Italian national team head coach. His agency had previous agreements with the national team to iron out details. Instead, Paolo Banchero ditched the meeting.

“It was a legitimate decision, but he could have made a call to communicate that to us. Instead, we learned about his decision from the newspapers. In the past few days, he was in Milan, and despite our agreements with his agency, he avoided the meeting with coach [Gianmarco] Pozzecco,” the Italian Basketball Federation president said.

Paolo Banchero could have been the face of Italian basketball in international competitions. The choice to forego his commitment to Team Italy may have permanently affected his image to the nation and its supporters.