This year’s Panini Rising Stars Challenge will put the most scrutinized rookies once again against each other. Victor Wembanyama and Chet Holmgren will be squaring off against each other in Indianapolis. But more recently, there is another rookie who is making some noise with his impressive performances – Brandon Miller of the Charlotte Hornets. 

The Hornets are having a pretty bad season. Of course, not as bad as Detroit, but they hold a 10-39 record and are the 13th-seeded East team. The latest loss in their eight-game skid was vs the Lakers. But whatever silver lining Charlotte sees is the courtesy of Miller.

Ex-Lakers legend becomes the fairy godmother of Brandon Miller

The 2x NBA champion and former Laker, Pau Gasol, is one of the honorary coaches that headlines the Rising Stars. Selected in a live draft, Miller was Gasol’s sixth pick of the night right behind Wemby. And with that, the Spaniard fulfilled the Hornets’ rising star’s wish. As tweeted by Sam Perley, “Brandon Miller gets his wish – he’ll be playing with Victor Wembanyama on Pau Gasol’s team.”

A total of 28 rookies, sophomores, and G League players are divided into groups of four with seven each. Aside from Gasol, former Indiana Fever star, Tamika Catchings, and ex-NBA player and sports analyst, Jalen Rose will each train and coach a seven-member group. Detlef Schrempf will take care of the G League players.

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Going back to Miller, though, it seems like the basketball gods really like what they are seeing from the 2023 second draft pick. On January 31st, when he was selected to participate in the Panini Rising Stars Challenge, Miller had said he was looking forward to playing with Wemby. “I want to be on Wemby’s team! Just throwing lobs the whole time. Put me on Wemby’s team.”

Clearly, Pau Gasol turned out to be his lucky charm. And it seems like going against the “generational talent” made him hungry for more. Getting to spend time with the legendary players will prove to be a learning experience for these aspiring NBA youngsters.

Having said that, let’s take a quick look at the Rising Stars game format.

The Panini Rising Stars Challenge

After the tip-off, which features numerous Indy specials on the menu, and free entry, the All-Stars will take off with the Panini Rising Stars Challenge at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. The event will consist of a three-game mini-tournament which will continue playing until a Final Target Score.

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The teams advancing to Semi-Finals will also play in the same format, with just one difference. Whichever team reaches the 40-point mark first will move to the last round. The Finals will have a 25-point mark. Out of the final two teams, whoever drops the first 25 will be crowned the Panini Rising Stars champion.

The 2023 Panini Tournament Champion was Pau Gasol’s team. Can Team Pau repeat the same this year? Who would you place your bets on? Let us know your winning picks!

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