Deni Avdija has taken leaps only the Blazers thought were possible

If you ask Portland Trail Blazers fans, Deni Avdija's breakout already happened down the stretch of last season. He's carried that momentum over into the 2025-26 season, emerging as Portland's clear-cut best player.

Now that Avdija is sustaining this level of play over an entire season and receiving more national recognition, he's already making a strong case to receive All-Star and Most Improved Player of the Year votes. This season, he's averaging 26.1 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 4.6 assists on efficient 49/38/85 shooting splits.

This is precisely the version of Avdija Portland had in mind when they made the surprisingly aggresive trade with the Washington Wizards. They sent over Malcolm Brogdon, the No. 14 pick in the 2024 NBA Draft (Bub Carrington), a 2029 first-rounder, and future seconds.

The Blazers saw the vision for Deni Avdija all along

Between GM Joe Cronin's vision for an athletic, versatile roster and assistant GM Mike Schmitz calling Avdija the steal of the 2020 NBA Draft, it's clear why they targeted Avdija as a piece to add to their young core.

In many ways, Avdija's star ascension was bound to happen regardless of what team he was on. In his final two seasons with Washington, he improved his three-point shooting efficiency from 29.7% to 37.4%, suggesting that leap as a three-level scorer was inevitable.

That said, landing in Portland was perfect for Avdija as it fast-tracked his career trajectory. Credit the Blazers, as they were willing to live with the growing pains that came with allowing Avdija to take on a more prominent point-forward role. At 24 years old, he's certainly not a finished product, averaging a career-high 3.3 turnovers this season. But Portland can live with those mistakes as they understand the bigger picture in terms of helping Avdija reach his ceiling.

That's why we say only the Blazers knew Avdija was capable of taking his game to these heights. They're the rebuilding team that unconventionally sacrificed valuable draft capital to get him. They're the team that gives him the freedom to play with a borderline reckless and free-flowing style, living with the good and bad results that come with a 24-year-old still learning how to refine his game without compromising what makes him a unique player in the first place.

Avdija is rewarding Portland's patience with a career-high in points and assists. It's one thing for him to put up All-Star-level numbers on a rebuilding team, but he's also contributing to winning and almost singlehandedly accelerating Portland's timeline. Despite their demanding schedule to start the season, Portland now sits at 6-5 and looks the part of a legitimate play-in team out West. That wouldn't be possible if it weren't for Avdija taking his game to another level.

In just his second year with the Blazers, he's already transformed into exactly the player Portland thought he would become.