It took a little time, but Deni Avdija has officially settled in with the Portland Trail Blazers. He's turned a corner in March, averaging 20.9 points, 9.6 rebounds, and 5.0 assists on highly efficient 49/45/82 shooting splits. He's already had three games of 30-plus points this month and has looked like the Blazers' best player during that stretch.
Avdija is finally looking comfortable playing with new teammates in a new system, playing more confidently and freely. Part of the reason he's breaking out in Portland is because of his improved shooting, which has opened up the rest of his well-rounded game. But the Blazers are also doing a better job of putting him in a position to succeed.
At the start of the season, Avdija wasn’t a top priority. It was a strange dynamic as Chauncey Billups took a while to optimize the new-look roster. Avdija also struggled with his three-point shot, which only added to the dilemma. He even came off the bench at one point.
But now, it's clear Billups has given Avdija the keys to the offense, giving them a refreshing change as one of their few players who can consistently get into the paint. Sure, that resulted in 3.9 turnovers per game in March, which is by far the highest of any month. But it's also led to 7.1 free throw attempts per game during that stretch.
Blazers are making Avdija the focal point the Wizards never did
With the Washington Wizards, Avdija's highest free throw attempts in any season were just 3.6. He was also behind Kyle Kuzma and Jordan Poole in terms of usage rate in the pecking order.
The Blazers are embracing the ups and downs that come with Avdija's aggressive style of play, and more often than not, it's leading to positive results, especially as of late. Avdija is having a career-best season and could eventually become an All-Star-level player if he maintains this pace in Portland.
Part of his improved play can be attributed to a 24-year-old gaining more experience. But credit also has to be given to the Blazers.
They identified Avdija's talent as the player they wanted to go out to get. And now Billups has finally figured out how to adapt to his style of play. If Washington knew what they had in Avdija, they likely wouldn't have (or at least shouldn't have) traded him, especially given his team-friendly contract.
Yes, it helped them improve their odds in the Cooper Flagg sweepstakes. But even the fact that Washington wasn't fully unlocking Avdija before the trade suggests that they didn't truly know what an exceptional talent they had on their hands.
The Blazers knew who Avdija was when they made the deal, surrendering valuable draft capital in an aggressive move to land him. But now, they are figuring out how to best utilize his unique talent. And it's resulting in a career-best stretch, keeping the Blazers in the play-in hunt.