Washington Wizards (Photo by TF-Images/Getty Images)
The Washington Wizards snagged a top-5 talent when they selected Deni Avdija with the 9th pick of the 2020 NBA draft. Here’s how he’ll fit into the lineup.
The Washington Wizards have to be delighted with their first-round selection of Deni Avdija. Avdija had been projected to go in the top-five with many in the industry expecting him to be long gone by the time the Wizards asked NBA commissioner Adam Silver to step to the podium and announce their pick.
The 19-year-old Israeli epitomizes the modern NBA. Standing at 6’9″ but with the fluidity and skills of a guard, Avdija is a do it all player who can cover one through four on defense and make plays on the ball as well as off it.
His combination of size, athleticism, and skill will allow him to slot into a large role right away with the potential to eventually be a franchise cornerstone. Prospects who have a high floor and high ceilings are the best bets to go early on draft night and the Wizards. ESPN draft analyst Mike Schmitz even went as far as to proclaim, “I think this is going to be the steal of the draft, to be honest.”
Outside of the fantastic value, Washington got with the ninth pick, Avdija’s game should make him a natural fit next to Bradley Beal and John Wall. The Wizards have scooped a prospect that fits their current roster and who has the flexibility to allow the Wizards to build any type of team they see fit into the future.
Getting the steal of the draft with the ninth pick has to have Wizards’ fans excited. Let’s take a look at what Avdija will offer the Wizards during his rookie campaign and what type of player he could grow into.
Washington Wizards (Photo by Nikola Krstic/MB Media/Getty Images)
What does Deni Avdija offer the Washington Wizards as a rookie?
NBA general managers have developed an insatiable appetite for jumbo-sized playmakers over the past few years. With the success of Luka Doncic and Nikola Jokic and LeBron James’ full-time move to point guard the league has acknowledged that no matter the height of a player if they can pass, the offense needs to flow through them.
Deni Avdija has wowed scouts with his smart passing and ability to create passing lanes out of thin air. Entering a team with two established stars in John Wall and Bradley Beal, Avdija should thrive setting the two up for easy buckets.
A lineup of Beal, Wall, and Avdija will have three playmakers who can get high-quality chances for themselves and others. The Wizards offense was exactly league average last season at 110.9 points per 100 possessions, expect them to challenge for the top-10 this season in that metric.
Avdija’s playmaking ability translates well off-ball where he showed a knack for attacking poor defensive rotations with savvy cuts to get easy looks. The backbone of the best offensive players is their ability to create easy looks, not their ability to hit tough shots.
Scouts are bullish on Avdija’s defense as well, which bodes well for a Wizards team that finished dead last in points allowed per 100 possessions. It is unlikely that Avdija will be a transformative defensive player but his intelligent off-ball positioning and toughness on-ball will provide an upgrade on that end for the Wizards.
Wizards fans should expect Avdija to post massive counting stats in his rookie campaign but it is likely that he’ll feature some of the best plus-minus numbers on the team. Snagging a player with the 9th pick that can instantly make your team better on both ends of the floor is a massive coup for the Wizards.
The floor for a player with Avdija’s profile is a high-end rotation player but his ceiling could be that of a star. These are the areas he’ll need to improve to reach that status and how soon the Wizards should expect it.
Washington Wizards</a> have to be delighted with their first-round selection of Deni Avdija. Avdija had been projected to go in the top-five with many in the industry expecting him to be long gone by the time the Wizards asked NBA commissioner Adam Silver to step to the podium and announce their pick.</p>
<p>The 19-year-old Israeli epitomizes the modern NBA. Standing at 6’9″ but with the fluidity and skills of a guard, Avdija is a do it all player who can cover one through four on defense and make plays on the ball as well as off it.</p>
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<p>His combination of size, athleticism, and skill will allow him to slot into a large role right away with the potential to eventually be a franchise cornerstone. Prospects who have a high floor and high ceilings are the best bets to go early on draft night and the Wizards. ESPN draft analyst Mike Schmitz even went as far as to proclaim, <a href=https://hoopshabit.com/2020/11/20/washington-wizards-deni-avdija/"https://www.nbcwashington.com/news/sports/nbcsports/espn-analyst-calls-wizards-top-pick-deni-avdija-steal-of-the-nba-draft/2480488/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">“I think this is going to be the steal of the draft, to be honest.”</a></p>
<p>Outside of the fantastic value, Washington got with the ninth pick, Avdija’s game should make him a natural fit next to Bradley Beal and John Wall. The Wizards have scooped a prospect that fits their current roster and who has the flexibility to allow the Wizards to build any type of team they see fit into the future.</p>
<p>Getting the steal of the draft with the ninth pick has to have Wizards’ fans excited. Let’s take a look at what Avdija will offer the Wizards during his rookie campaign and what type of player he could grow into.</p>
<div id="attachment_415679" class="wp-caption alignnone">
<img class="wp-image-415679 size-full" src=https://hoopshabit.com/2020/11/20/washington-wizards-deni-avdija/"https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/fetch/c_fill,g_auto,f_auto,h_1107,w_1600/http%3A%2F%2Fhoopshabit.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2Fgetty-images%2F2018%2F08%2F1205517347.jpeg" alt="" width="1600" height="1107" srcset="https://hoopshabit.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2018/08/1205517347.jpeg 1600w, https://hoopshabit.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2018/08/1205517347-768x531.jpeg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1600px) 100vw, 1600px"><p class="wp-caption-text">Washington Wizards (Photo by Nikola Krstic/MB Media/Getty Images)</p>
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<h2>What does Deni Avdija offer the Washington Wizards as a rookie?</h2>
<p>NBA general managers have developed an insatiable appetite for jumbo-sized playmakers over the past few years. With the success of Luka Doncic and Nikola Jokic and LeBron James’ full-time move to point guard the league has acknowledged that no matter the height of a player if they can pass, the offense needs to flow through them.</p>
<p>Deni Avdija has wowed scouts with his smart passing and ability to create passing lanes out of thin air. Entering a team with two established stars in John Wall and Bradley Beal, Avdija should thrive setting the two up for easy buckets.</p>
<p>A lineup of Beal, Wall, and Avdija will have three playmakers who can get high-quality chances for themselves and others. The Wizards offense was exactly league average last season at 110.9 points per 100 possessions, expect them to challenge for the top-10 this season in that metric.</p>
<p>Avdija’s playmaking ability translates well off-ball where he showed a knack for attacking poor defensive rotations with savvy cuts to get easy looks. The backbone of the best offensive players is their ability to create easy looks, not their ability to hit tough shots.</p>
<div class="embed embed-video"><iframe width="500" height="281" src=https://hoopshabit.com/2020/11/20/washington-wizards-deni-avdija/"https://www.youtube.com/embed/JgW5ViuCYhc?feature=oembed%22 frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe></div>
<p>Scouts are bullish on Avdija’s defense as well, which bodes well for a Wizards team that finished dead last in points allowed per 100 possessions. It is unlikely that Avdija will be a transformative defensive player but his intelligent off-ball positioning and toughness on-ball will provide an upgrade on that end for the Wizards.</p>
<p>Wizards fans should expect Avdija to post massive counting stats in his rookie campaign but it is likely that he’ll feature some of the best plus-minus numbers on the team. Snagging a player with the 9th pick that can instantly make your team better on both ends of the floor is a massive coup for the Wizards.</p>
<p>The floor for a player with Avdija’s profile is a high-end rotation player but his ceiling could be that of a star. These are the areas he’ll need to improve to reach that status and how soon the Wizards should expect it.</p>
<div class="next-slide slider"> <a class="next-slide-btn" style="background:#222423" data-track="shortcode" data-track-action="next-slide-shortcode" href=https://hoopshabit.com/2020/11/20/washington-wizards-deni-avdija/"#"> <span class="title">Next:</span> What's Avdija's potential? </a>
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<img class="wp-image-415678 size-full" src=https://hoopshabit.com/2020/11/20/washington-wizards-deni-avdija/"https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/fetch/c_fill,g_auto,f_auto,h_2129,w_3200/http%3A%2F%2Fhoopshabit.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2Fgetty-images%2F2018%2F08%2F1205506402.jpeg" alt="" width="3200" height="2129" srcset="https://hoopshabit.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2018/08/1205506402.jpeg 3200w, https://hoopshabit.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2018/08/1205506402-768x511.jpeg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 3200px) 100vw, 3200px"><p class="wp-caption-text">Washington Wizards (Photo by Nikola Krstic/MB Media/Getty Images)</p>
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<h2>What’s Deni Avdija’s upside?</h2>
<p>For almost all prospects their upside is dictated by how much they improve their areas of weakness. Deni Avdija’s most glaring flaw, as it stands right now, is his inconsistent jump shot.</p>
<p>In the Euro League, the world’s second most competitive basketball league behind the NBA, Avdija shot 59.6 percent on his 2-point attempts and 27.7 percent on 3-pointers. The massive disparity was a result of Avdija’s adherence to attempting the most analytically friendly shots of lay-ups and threes.</p>
<p>When Avdija gets to the rim his ability to finish is not in question, but everything outside of the paint has been a struggle over his career. The most concerning shooting metric for Avdija is that he shot 55.6 percent from the free throw line, albeit on only 18 total attempts.</p>
<p>If Avdija’s jump shot continues to be subpar in the NBA he’ll have almost no chance of reaching his potential as a two-way star. Wizards fans shouldn’t fret if his three-ball is poor in year one, but if he continues to shoot below 65 percent from the free throw line then there is very little chance he’ll ever be an average three-point shooter.</p>
<p>If he is able to pair his elite playmaking with an average 3-point shot then Avdija has a chance to be an offensive fulcrum in the mold of Luka Doncic. As silky as Doncic’s step-back three is, he has only shot 32.1 percent on 3-pointers in his career.</p>
<p>Avdija is not the ball handler or passer that Doncic is but a player that is 80 percent as good as Doncic is still a borderline All-Star. His upside is as a two-way player capable of carrying an offense on his own but that is more adept at being a team’s second option.</p>
<div class="next-slide slider"> <a class="next-slide-btn" style="background:#222423" data-track="shortcode" data-track-action="next-slide-shortcode" href=https://hoopshabit.com/2020/11/20/washington-wizards-deni-avdija/"#"> <span class="title">Next:</span> What are the chances that Deni Avdija reaches his potential? </a>
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<img class="wp-image-415676 size-full" src=https://hoopshabit.com/2020/11/20/washington-wizards-deni-avdija/"https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/fetch/c_fill,g_auto,f_auto,h_2024,w_3200/http%3A%2F%2Fhoopshabit.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2Fgetty-images%2F2018%2F08%2F1205463560.jpeg" alt="Dei Avdija" width="3200" height="2024" srcset="https://hoopshabit.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2018/08/1205463560.jpeg 3200w, https://hoopshabit.com/wp-content/uploads/getty-images/2018/08/1205463560-768x486.jpeg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 3200px) 100vw, 3200px"><p class="wp-caption-text">Washington Wizards (Photo by Nikola Krstic/MB Media/Getty Images)</p>
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<h2>What are the chances that Deni Avdija reaches his potential?</h2>
<p>Players have shown significant improvement to their shooting over their careers but it is not an extremely common occurrence. It’s likely that Avdija’s availability at the ninth pick was due to other teams’ concerns that he’ll never be an average jump shooter.</p>
<p>Avdija has all the intangibles that NBA teams look for and an average jump shot would vault him into the All-Star conversation. He has been in a professional setting for longer than any other draft prospect and his father played professionally as well.</p>
<p>Players with his background tend to reach their potential due to their deep understanding of the work needed to be a professional basketball player. If Avdija never becomes a great shooter it’s probable that that was never in the cards for him anyway.</p>
<p>In all likelihood, by the time the Wizards have to consider extending Avdija, they’ll have a good idea of what the future holds for him. If his shooting has progressed he’ll be a near-lock for an extension and even if it hasn’t his all-around skill set could make him an integral part of their team-building strategy.</p>
<p>The Wizards are stocked with good shooters which will allow Avdija to get serious game time without his most concerning weakness holding the team back. All the attention paid to John Wall, Bradley Beal, and Thomas Bryant at the 3-point line will give Avdija ample open looks to build confidence in his shot.</p>
<p>The upside for Avdija is as a borderline All-NBA player who can impact the court on both ends. If his shooting stroke is better than advertised then the Wizards will have scooped the best player in the draft and a cornerstone player to build around for the next decade.</p>
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