Deni Avdija and the Portland Trail Blazers were a hot topic of conversation on the latest episode of The Ringer NBA Show’s Group Chat podcast. At around the 18:00 mark of the show, co-hosts Justin Verrier, Rob Mahoney, and J. Kyle Mann explore the question, “Is Deni Avdija a Superstar in the Making?”
Now in his sixth year, Avdija is averaging career highs in points (25.8) and assists (6.3). His three-point percentage (38%) and free throw percentage (80.9%) are also on track to be career bests.
At this
time last season, Avdija was struggling with his new team and coming off the bench behind Jerami Grant and Toumani Camara. Now, he’s piling up statistics usually reserved for some of the NBA’s most accomplished stars. Among qualifying players, he is fourth in the NBA in free throw attempts per game (9.6), and is one of only four players (Luka Doncic, Nikola Jokic, and Giannis Antetokounmpo are the others) averaging greater than 25 points, seven rebounds, and six assists.
While highlighting Avdija’s big leap this season, the podcast hosts praise the 6-foot-8 forward’s relentlessness and unselfish play.
Mahoney: Even as he’s putting up these crazy numbers, it never feels like he’s monopolizing the offense. It never feels like he is seizing control of something. There is just a lot of opportunity with the Blazers right now because of who they are playing, or in this case who isn’t playing. And he grabs every single marginal opportunity he can and makes something out of it in a way that not a lot of guys in the league can do, to be honest.
Mann: Yeah. Stardom, superstardom, really is who you are in the paint. I think that leads to free throw attempts. That leads to buckets in the paint. His points in the paint are way up. …
I just remember watching him with Tel Aviv. All of the things that I was like, “I’m not so sure [about],” like he has just gone to the moon. Every single one of them. His pace as a ball-handler, his consistency as a shooter. …
And what I really like about him is even though his usage has continued to expand, you haven’t seen him get too tunnel-vision in one direction as a scorer. He is scoring to serve his playmaking. His assist percentage has just really leaped this year.
They go on to contemplate Avdija’s place in the hierarchy of NBA stars, where he could land on All-NBA ballots, and whether or not he’ll be an All-Star this year. The whole segment lasts about 16 minutes and is worth a listen.
Avdija and the Blazers are back in action Thursday night when they finish up a five-game road trip in New Orleans. The game tips off at 5:00 p.m. Pacific.
