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Deni Avdija Shares Honest Thoughts On Wizards Trading Him

Originally posted on Athlon Sports
By Gerard Angelo Samillano | Last updated Mar 21, 2025 9:42 PM ET

The Washington Wizards made a surprising trade during the 2024 NBA Draft. They traded away former first-round pick Deni Avdija to the Portland Trail Blazers for the pick that eventually became Bub Carrington. It was a surprising trade, especially since Avdija was coming off a career year.

Now with the Blazers, Avdija is performing at roughly the same level as he did with the Wizards. He's averaging a career-high 15.6 points per game on slightly lower shooting percentages while adding 6.8 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game. Avdija talked about his trade to the Blazers with The Athletic, where he shared how he felt after he learned about the news.

"It was nighttime at my place (in Israel), and I woke up," Avdija said. "I saw I got traded, and it was very hard for me. All the friendships that I had with the guys there, the city, the fans - it all just disappeared in a second. But everything's for the good. I feel like I found a nice home in Portland."

In his final season with the Wizards, Avdija scored 14.7 points per game while slashing 50.6/37.4/74 on his shooting percentages. His production is similar to his current season in Portland, where he's taking on a more prominent role with the Blazers. Interestingly, he seems to have made some changes to his game: his three-point attempt rate and free-throw rate skyrocketed with Portland (41.3% 3PA rate and 45.7% FT rate, from 29.3% and 34% respectively).

The Wizards did get Carrington from the trade, and the rookie has been quite impressive for them this season. Right now, though, the Blazers seem to have found a star in the making with Avdija.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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