Why Deni Avdija Is A Great Pickup For The Trail Blazers

Why Deni Avdija Is A Great Pickup For The Trail Blazers

did you watch much of the Washington Wizards this past season if not you might not be familiar with Denny AIA at age 23 he’s coming off a breakout year while being younger than seven players who were just taken in the 2024 draft though with the Wizards fully committed to building through the draft they traded AIA to the Trailblazers for the 14th pick Malcolm Brogden in a future first round pick this should be beneficial for both sides but AIA is a very intriguing young player who doesn’t get much Buzz I’m going to take a deeper look and show I aia’s versatility at both ends of the floor makes him a player the Trailblazers were smart to bet on not even accounting for what he brings on the floor a is very valuable in another sense his team-friendly contract with the new tax aprons and the collective bargaining agreement players that can make an impact without breaking the bank or a massive Advantage take a look at the extension AIA assigned last off seon given what versatile Wings go for in the open market this is an absolute bargain in AIA when he figures to just be entering his prime only accounts for 6% of the salary recap even if the Trailblazers rebuild doesn’t move as quickly as they’d like this makes AIA an incredibly valuable trade ship now let’s take a look at some areas where AIA improved offensively a 31% three-point shooter his first three seasons in the NBA AIA knocked down 37% of his attempts from deep in his fourth year while there were some instances where he shot off movement AIA was deadly on spot UPS he ranked in the 80th percentile on them this past year and shot 41% on catch and shoot threes though another aspect that makes him valuable when spotting up is his ability to attack Closeouts on this possession this starts as a high pick and roll for the Wizards the look at AIA the moment he catches the ball he already has a plan to attack and Julius Randle isn’t prepared for it AIA Blows By Randall and scores two points with an impressive finish at The Rim another area where AIA grew this past season was scoring out of pick and roll in the 2023 season he ranked an 18th percentile scoring out of the action this past year he jumped up to the 40th percentile while also showing some ability to shoot from three off the dribble though he creates mismatches in the action getting downhill at 69 AIA has the ability to blow by bigger opponents but it’s decides to bully smaller ones when he gets into the paint ofi is also able to create for others out of the action this possession starts as a high pick and roll where an initial screen is set early to get damont sabonis switched on the AIA he uses his speed to get downhill and once he gets into the paint look at the attention AIA draws that’s three kings Defenders around him and the other two are watching the ball AIA gets all the way to the basket before kicking it out to a wideopen teammate who knocks down the three given his size and lateral movement AIA is an ideal defender in today’s NBA he’s a wing with a blend of size and lateral movement that allows him to defend players at various positions in this possession the Hawks run pick and roll to get Trey young was hypothetically a mismatch for zavia though this doesn’t work as planned the Hawks set a slip screen here to create more space for young and potentially create a lob chance but AIA works right through it he then displays the movement to stick with young laterally and blocks his shot the Trailblazers are still far from competing in a daunting Western Conference but at 23 years old AIA is a great piece to pair with their young core this past year he showed impressive flashes of creating offense for himself and others while showing Improvement as a shooter that doesn’t even account for his ability to get out and run and transition or score on cuts a is also a versatile Defender who can guard a wide array of players if called upon on top of that he has a fantastic contract which is great for the Trailblazers in terms of roster construction or could lead to a nice Hall if they choose to trade him at some point AIA being traded won’t be the most notable move this offseason but his growth this past year and value he could bring down the line makes him a player to keep an eye on for the foreseeable future

Deni Avdija took his game to another level this past season with the Washington Wizards. Though with the team looking to start fresh, they traded him to the Portland Trail Blazers leading up to the 2024 draft. Still only 23, Avdija can be a very valuable contributor for the Trail Blazers as he has a versatile skill set on both ends of the floor. I take a look at what Avdija improved at this past season, and what he offers as a player that should help the Trail Blazers moving forward. #nba #basketball #trailblazers #portlandtrailblazers #deniavdija #sports #trending #highlights

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