Deni Avdija

[CntOutSmrtCrazy]

https://youtu.be/q7ujlR21TXo

Watch on YouTube

Turbo Deni has my attention

The 4th of July music in the background.

[BearlyBallin]

https://youtu.be/q7ujlR21TXo

Watch on YouTube

Turbo Deni has my attention

The 4th of July music in the background.

I was so focused on Turbo Deni I didn’t notice the music until you mentioned it. Now I can’t stop hearing it.

[pcbothwel]

I'll tell you what... As much as a rag on Kuz and wish we would cash in on his value, there has been no better influence than him on Deni. You can very clearly see that Deni is starting to attack the basket using the same array of moves and tactics that Kuz does and it shows.
Good stuff to see.

[DoItALL9]

He's heating up

Sent from my LM-G710 using RealGM mobile app

[Pistol King]

Welcome to the NBA Deni.

To me, it's not even a coincidence the Wiz are winning their first game at Spurs in 23 years when Deni has a career night. Dude is just built to winning basketball.

Kudos to Drew Hanlen for improving his handles. Tonight he took it to the next level and in the first time has looked like a shot creator.

Euro steps, up and under finishing, hesi.. alongside the regular high level defense.

That's all we wanna see, a progress.

Keep up the assertive mindset Deni, everything else will follow through.

[AFM]

Damn this fella low key turbocharged let’s go

[NatP4]

13-10-2-2 on 60% TS in his last 5 games. Also an absurd +18.2 net rating

[smoothSeph]

Next step, be comfortable doing this starting. The best 5 players need to play the most minutes.

[keynote]

Next step, be comfortable doing this starting. The best 5 players need to play the most minutes.

I generally agree; however, given Beal/KP/Kuz's usage, he might be better off coming off the bench. If we were to somehow swap Kuz for a low-usage, high-efficiency type (e.g., a Klay-like finisher in the front court), or even if we were to start Wright over Morris, then I think Deni would fit in to the starting unit as a secondary-tertiary playmaker.

[mhd]

Next step, be comfortable doing this starting. The best 5 players need to play the most minutes.

Im ok with Deni coming off the bench. His playmaking is needed there. Plus, Kispert provides some much needed spacing.

[nate33]

Next step, be comfortable doing this starting. The best 5 players need to play the most minutes.

Im ok with Deni coming off the bench. His playmaking is needed there. Plus, Kispert provides some much needed spacing.

Agreed. I'm not too worried about who is starting versus who is coming off the bench. I just want Avdija to get 30 minutes a night.

Also, with Rui no longer on the roster, Avdija is the only other power forward in our 8-man rotation, so we definitely need him on the court when Kuzma sits. So if Kuzma is starting, the rotations are easier to manage with Avdija coming off the bench. (I consider our core 8 guys to be Morris, Wright, Beal, Kispert, Avdija, Kuzma, Gafford and Porzingis. The other guys: Goodwin, Nunn, Barton, Gill and Gibson, are situational subs, not core rotation guys.)

[CntOutSmrtCrazy]

Next step, be comfortable doing this starting. The best 5 players need to play the most minutes.

Im ok with Deni coming off the bench. His playmaking is needed there. Plus, Kispert provides some much needed spacing.

Agreed. I'm not too worried about who is starting versus who is coming off the bench. I just want Avdija to get 30 minutes a night.

Also, with Rui no longer on the roster, Avdija is the only other power forward in our 8-man rotation, so we definitely need him on the court when Kuzma sits. So if Kuzma is starting, the rotations are easier to manage with Avdija coming off the bench. (I consider our core 8 guys to be Morris, Wright, Beal, Kispert, Avdija, Kuzma, Gafford and Porzingis. The other guys: Goodwin, Nunn, Barton, Gill and Gibson, are situational subs, not core rotation guys.)

Yep 30+ minutes and in most instances closing the second and forth quarters is what I primarily keep and eye out in terms of how WUJ is using him. I think in general the last 6 or 7 minutes of the first and and third and last 7 or 8 minutes for the second or fourth has worked pretty well for him. Certainly can be more nuanced given a particular situation, but I don't mind that generalized minute distribution. I want to see him helping us close out quarters with his defense, rebounding, penetration, and ball movement abilities.

[nate33]

Im ok with Deni coming off the bench. His playmaking is needed there. Plus, Kispert provides some much needed spacing.

Agreed. I'm not too worried about who is starting versus who is coming off the bench. I just want Avdija to get 30 minutes a night.

Also, with Rui no longer on the roster, Avdija is the only other power forward in our 8-man rotation, so we definitely need him on the court when Kuzma sits. So if Kuzma is starting, the rotations are easier to manage with Avdija coming off the bench. (I consider our core 8 guys to be Morris, Wright, Beal, Kispert, Avdija, Kuzma, Gafford and Porzingis. The other guys: Goodwin, Nunn, Barton, Gill and Gibson, are situational subs, not core rotation guys.)

Yep 30+ minutes and in most instances closing the second and forth quarters is what I primarily keep and eye out in terms of how WUJ is using him. I think in general the last 6 or 7 minutes of the first and and third and last 7 or 8 minutes for the second or fourth has worked pretty well for him. Certainly can be more nuanced given a particular situation, but I don't mind that generalized minute distribution. I want to see him helping us close out quarters with his defense, rebounding, penetration, and ball movement abilities.

Agreed.

Also, it can be argued that, early in the game, the team needs a more deliberate approach. When defenses are fresh, teams play in the half-court more often and Kispert's floor spacing is a real advantage. Deni's open court ability and playmaking ability work better as defenses get a bit more tired and find themselves scrambling more.

[FAH1223]

Read on Twitter

[deneem4]

Agreed. I'm not too worried about who is starting versus who is coming off the bench. I just want Avdija to get 30 minutes a night.

Also, with Rui no longer on the roster, Avdija is the only other power forward in our 8-man rotation, so we definitely need him on the court when Kuzma sits. So if Kuzma is starting, the rotations are easier to manage with Avdija coming off the bench. (I consider our core 8 guys to be Morris, Wright, Beal, Kispert, Avdija, Kuzma, Gafford and Porzingis. The other guys: Goodwin, Nunn, Barton, Gill and Gibson, are situational subs, not core rotation guys.)

Yep 30+ minutes and in most instances closing the second and forth quarters is what I primarily keep and eye out in terms of how WUJ is using him. I think in general the last 6 or 7 minutes of the first and and third and last 7 or 8 minutes for the second or fourth has worked pretty well for him. Certainly can be more nuanced given a particular situation, but I don't mind that generalized minute distribution. I want to see him helping us close out quarters with his defense, rebounding, penetration, and ball movement abilities.

Agreed.

Also, it can be argued that, early in the game, the team needs a more deliberate approach. When defenses are fresh, teams play in the half-court more often and Kispert's floor spacing is a real advantage. Deni's open court ability and playmaking ability work better as defenses get a bit more tired and find themselves scrambling more.

Disagree; he should be the starting point guard

[CntOutSmrtCrazy]

Yep 30+ minutes and in most instances closing the second and forth quarters is what I primarily keep and eye out in terms of how WUJ is using him. I think in general the last 6 or 7 minutes of the first and and third and last 7 or 8 minutes for the second or fourth has worked pretty well for him. Certainly can be more nuanced given a particular situation, but I don't mind that generalized minute distribution. I want to see him helping us close out quarters with his defense, rebounding, penetration, and ball movement abilities.

Agreed.

Also, it can be argued that, early in the game, the team needs a more deliberate approach. When defenses are fresh, teams play in the half-court more often and Kispert's floor spacing is a real advantage. Deni's open court ability and playmaking ability work better as defenses get a bit more tired and find themselves scrambling more.

Disagree; he should be the starting point guard

He can get there, but if he can come off the bench and hone his offensive game in the process, why mess with it? I'm fine with gradual steps in developing a young player. If he continues to excel doing what he's done the past few games, then maybe there's a serious argument to him starting. I just don't think it's worth worrying about at this given time.

Also, with Monte finally not playing like a bum like he did earlier in the season, he's not going to supplant him at PG either. If he supplants someone, it'll be Kispert if Morris continues to play better. Once Gafford is back, it further moots the point.

I rather them start him once they have no choice, but he's going to have to be consistent with his offense to dictate that decision. I'm excited as the next to see him do that, and Deni from the last 4 game has got a lot of folks excited because he's actually a guy that could move the needle for us given our situation, but I'm cool with not forcing the issue either.

All that said, it's a lot brighter in this thread than two weeks ago, so that's great news.

[prime1time]

While it's undeniable that Avdija has had a recent positive stretch, I'm still not sold on him. For the year he's shooting 28.6% from 3. For his career he's shooting 30.9% from 3. In January he shot 21.2% from 3. We can talk about everything he does well, but the simple reality is that this is not going to get it done. It's fascinating that people are already penciling him into our plans for the future. To shoot this bad from 3, when teams are basically daring you to shoot 3's is astounding.

[prime1time]

Yep 30+ minutes and in most instances closing the second and forth quarters is what I primarily keep and eye out in terms of how WUJ is using him. I think in general the last 6 or 7 minutes of the first and and third and last 7 or 8 minutes for the second or fourth has worked pretty well for him. Certainly can be more nuanced given a particular situation, but I don't mind that generalized minute distribution. I want to see him helping us close out quarters with his defense, rebounding, penetration, and ball movement abilities.

Agreed.

Also, it can be argued that, early in the game, the team needs a more deliberate approach. When defenses are fresh, teams play in the half-court more often and Kispert's floor spacing is a real advantage. Deni's open court ability and playmaking ability work better as defenses get a bit more tired and find themselves scrambling more.

Disagree; he should be the starting point guard

How many good starting pg's are shooting 28.6% from 3?

[Dark Faze]

Continues to be hard to know what the next contract will be. Size + rebounding + defense + consistent health has value, but there aren't a lot of players like that anymore to do a good contract comparison for. I think the 10 mil a year or so with a player option on year 3 would be a good contract for both sides assuming there isn't significant improvement next season.

That being said, Delon and Monte will probably want slight pay increases.

[CntOutSmrtCrazy]

While it's undeniable that Avdija has had a recent positive stretch, I'm still not sold on him. For the year he's shooting 28.6% from 3. For his career he's shooting 30.9% from 3. In January he shot 21.2% from 3. We can talk about everything he does well, but the simple reality is that this is not going to get it done. It's fascinating that people are already penciling him into our plans for the future. To shoot this bad from 3, when teams are basically daring you to shoot 3's is astounding.

Well when you hone on the obvious weakest part of his game, sure he doesn't seem all that good. Plenty of examples of people learning how to shoot the ball after coming into the league as really young players. Ariza is a prime example. A horrendous three point shooter his first couple of seasons, much worse than Deni, and he eventually got his shot down. His free throws, as others have pointed to, is an indicator that he can improve his shooting. He's improved finishing at the bucket too.

I don't think many who get excited about him don't realize he needs to improve from range. But despite his lack of a three pointer at this stage of his career, one would have to say it is fairly impressive how he can get to the rim given players are "daring him to shoot threes," wouldn't you say?