The Portland Trail Blazers have struck gold with the ascension of Deni Avdija this season. The 6-foot-8 forward has unexpectedly elevated his play to an All-Star level and while Portland may not be experiencing the level of success they would like, Avdija provides them with optimism for the future. In light of this, former NBA star Jeff Teague went even a step further to compare Avdija’s skillset to MVP candidate Luka Doncic.
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In the 2020 NBA Draft, the Washington Wizards selected Avdija with the ninth pick. Unfortunately, he didn’t live up to the team’s expectations through his first four seasons with the franchise. Consequently, they traded him to the Trail Blazers ahead of the 2024-25 season. It appears that a change of scenery is what Avdija needed to reach his full potential.
Since joining the Trail Blazers, Avdija’s confidence has reached new heights, which has seen him average 26.3 points, 7.2 rebounds and 7.0 assists per game.
Those numbers are undoubtedly deserving of an All-Star nod. The Club 520 Podcast believes Avdija will be among the short list of All-Stars this season. However, Jeff Teague asserts that Avdija’s play is on the same level as Doncic.
“Come on, bro, he looks like Luka,” Teague said. “He really like that.”
A comparison to Doncic is one mighty claim. After all, Doncic began his career making the All-NBA First Team in five out of his first six seasons.
For the casual fan, it may seem that Deni came out of nowhere but that isn’t the case. Teague gives credit to one former Blazers staff member for sparking this change in the Israeli star.
“He was killing last year, shoutout to Chauncey Billups. He kind of put the battery in his back. Billups saw something in him,” Teague added.
Unfortunately, Billups is currently unable to be witness Avdija realize his potential due to his ongoing legal issues. Regardless, the Blazers couldn’t be happier with what they have gotten this season.
It’s a long season, so despite Avdija being en route to it, it remains to be seen if he can become an All-Star this season. He currently ranks seventh in fan voting for Western Conference players but if the voting gains momentum, there’s a good chance he gets to join Doncic on the All-Star team this season.
