Do you remember where you were when the Portland Trail Blazers traded for Deni Avdija? Personally, I was sitting in an Irish pub across the street from Barclays Center before the NBA Draft. Near me, there was a group of French men in matching red shirts who kept yelling, "Risacher!" I received the trade alert on my phone and showed it to my friend, who said, "Oh, Avdija, that's cool."
Little did he know — little did any of us know, to be fair, how impactful that move would be about 18 months later. Because now, in year two with the Blazers, and year six in the NBA, Avdija is flirting with stardom and every night he gets closer and closer to making the relationship official.
Through nine games, Avdija is averaging 25.3 points, 7.0 rebounds, 4.9 assists, and somehow, the numbers don't do him justice. Avdija is the rare player who can produce big numbers while doing everything that doesn't show up on the stat sheet. The extra pass, the smart cut, the good defensive rotation.
Even without being the team's leading scorer, Avdija would be a positive asset. But he is the team's leading scorer, which makes him a hugely important piece of this team's future, and makes the trade Joe Cronin made last year one of the best in franchise history.
The Deni Avdija trade has changed the Blazers trajectory
When the deal first went down, plenty of fans were hesitant to embrace it due to the price: two first-round picks (one in 2024, one in 2029) and multiple future second-rounders. My stance has always been steadfast on matters of trading draft picks — trade the picks, get the good player. The idea of draft picks is almost always better than the player said pick turns into.
No offense to Bub Carrington (I really mean that, I think Carrington can become a good player), but it was pretty clear the second that Washington drafted Carrington that the Blazers had pulled off a heist. When the mystery of a "pick" wears off, teams are left with... A rookie!
A rebuilding team trading first-round picks will always come with added skepticism from the fan base, and this deal was no different. But Avdija — who is just 24 himself, may I remind you — immediately proved the Blazers right in their decision, and makes the decision look better by the day.
The allure of inexperience is real for front offices. Instead of being sucked into the potential of a draft pick, Cronin and the Blazers front office opted to add a player who had already proved he was an NBA-caliber player and could be more than that. These are the moves that build a small-market team. Hitting on Avdija changed the trajectory of the Blazers, and he hasn't stopped rising yet. A risk in the moment, sure, but PDX is reaping the benefits of taking that risk on a daily basis.
Make sure to say your daily thank you's to the Wizards for making this deal last summer.