Paolo Banchero

Hashtag Five

Some autographs are just ink. This one was a beginning.

The tunnel was nearly empty. Most of the players were still on the court, still in the locker room, still anywhere but here. Then, down at the far end, someone started walking back alone. From that distance, we couldn't tell who it was.

Christian could. He recognized him before I did — Paolo Banchero, still early in his sophomore season, and Christian already had the rookie card in his hand, waiting for exactly this kind of moment without knowing it would actually come.

Paolo wasn't looking our way, so I spoke up to get his attention. He glanced over first with a look that was more skepticism than anything — another kid, another card, another request in a hallway full of them. I asked if he'd sign for Christian. The moment he actually looked at Christian, something in his face changed. He smiled, and he took the card.

It was our first "superstar" signing, in quotes, because at the time that's exactly how it felt. Paolo signed it in plain black ink on a dark background — no flash to it, nothing that would have caught your eye at a card show. But he didn't just put his usual "PB." He added "#5" beneath it. We didn't think much of it in the moment. It was only later that we understood that wasn't something he did for everyone.

It was a simple autograph, on a simple card, in a mostly empty tunnel.
And it was the first step of a road Christian's been walking ever since.