Deni Avdija

tontoz · Post #801 » by **tontoz** » Wed Nov 3, 2021 2:22 am

I remember watching his draft profile vids and worrying about his defense. Watching him now he seems fine defending the 3 and the 4. I can't remember anyone really going off against him.

3s can't get past him consistently off the dribble. 4s aren't bullying him which has surprised me. He certainly looks bigger than his listed 210 pounds.

arusinov · Post #802 » by **arusinov** » Wed Nov 3, 2021 2:32 pm

tontoz wrote:I remember watching his draft profile vids and worrying about his defense. Watching him now he seems fine defending the 3 and the 4. I can't remember anyone really going off against him.

3s can't get past him consistently off the dribble. 4s aren't bullying him which has surprised me. He certainly looks bigger than his listed 210 pounds.

Actually Deni was known as rare case of teenager which is above-average defender in Euroleague (the only other player I remember was Rubio, Luka wasn't )

Also it was said in the pre-draft program on Israeli TV that he's ~227 lbs. I don't think he's less now

payitforward · Post #803 » by **payitforward** » Wed Nov 3, 2021 3:13 pm

Honestly, I do not understand the point of this exchange -- at all.

Deni has played 138 minutes so far this season. That's not a sample size from which to draw any conclusions.

Primetime points out that Deni isn't shooting well -- with an emphasis on his low 3-point %. That's absolutely correct & fair. Only... there's little need for over-stated claims about his future or imagined scenarios of failure.

What might be more to the point is to say that his ceiling seems to depend on how good a shooter he becomes. Yet, that's pretty much true b/c of how well he's playing overall.

Overall Deni is playing extremely well. Above all his rebounding & defense have been stellar. Against the Celtics a few days ago, for example, Deni had 7 boards in 24 minutes. In fact, w/o his 2 offensive rebounds & 2 blocked shots, we probably never get to overtime. I didn't give him POTG -- not close! -- but it seems foolish not to recognize how much he's contributing this year.

That said, there are other areas aside from shooting where one would also like to see improvement -- in particular in assists, steals, & fouls. He could use to get better in those areas. &, given how young he is, there's a reasonable expectation that he will indeed improve. In pretty much every area of the game.

Post #804 » by **Rafael122** » Wed Nov 3, 2021 7:08 pm

Whatever happens this year, in the offseason, Deni needs to spend every day in the gym shooting 3s. If he continues on this trajectory on defense, the only thing holding him back is his jumpshot and finishing abilities.

dobrojim · Post #805 » by **dobrojim** » Thu Nov 4, 2021 12:43 pm

Free throw shooting!

eye test 3 pt shooting doesn't seem too bad. Not sure what the (small sample size) numbers say

and freakin' finish at the rim.

All that said, I like him.

GoneShammGone · Post #806 » by **GoneShammGone** » Thu Nov 4, 2021 2:06 pm

It's time for Deni to start. He needs to be getting 25+ minutes a game. Send Kuz to the bench.

tontoz · Post #807 » by **tontoz** » Thu Nov 4, 2021 2:23 pm

Not a fan of the finger rolls over the front rim. Either dunk it or use the glass.

More concerning to me was what happened the first two times he got the ball in the first quarter. Both times he caught the ball in the lane and didn't even look at the basket. One of them he was wide open with a sole defender right under the basket. Shoot the dam ball.

closg00 · Post #808 » by **closg00** » Thu Nov 4, 2021 4:45 pm

Deni is not a Top-10 pick in Jimmer's re-draft, just for fun.

Watch on YouTube

FAH1223 · Post #809 » by **FAH1223** » Fri Nov 5, 2021 2:49 am

Read on Twitter

tontoz · Post #810 » by **tontoz** » Fri Nov 5, 2021 2:02 pm

Yeah they can iso Deni all day as far as i'm concerned. Sure guys will score on him at times that's what NBA players do, but they won't do it efficiently.

GoneShammGone · Post #811 » by **GoneShammGone** » Fri Nov 5, 2021 2:06 pm

tontoz wrote:Yeah they can iso Deni all day as far as i'm concerned. Sure guys will score on him at times that's what NBA players do, but they won't do it efficiently.

He just seems so good at staying in front of his man. Almost always at least ends up getting a solid contest. I think OG went around him once last game and I realized that it was probably the first time Deni got solidly beat all season...

Shy Gorgeous-Al · Post #812 » by **Shy Gorgeous-Al** » Sat Nov 6, 2021 7:50 pm

Deni is such a good defensive player. Like a true lockdown that is able to guard 1-5 against even the quickest of players.

He is so underrated and underappreciated in that area. It needs to be known. Yes, he is a work in progress on the offensive end, but his defense can be a game changer.

Dolevi · Post #813 » by **Dolevi** » Sat Nov 6, 2021 8:19 pm

Is he going to shut down Giannis on Sunday?

tontoz · Post #814 » by **tontoz** » Sat Nov 6, 2021 9:35 pm

Dolevi wrote:Is he going to shut down Giannis on Sunday?

Hadn't thought about that but it would be a fun matchup to see.

prime1time · Post #815 » by **prime1time** » Sun Nov 7, 2021 1:38 am

Shy Gorgeous-Al wrote:Deni is such a good defensive player. Like a true lockdown that is able to guard 1-5 against even the quickest of players.

He is so underrated and underappreciated in that area. It needs to be known. Yes, he is a work in progress on the offensive end, but his defense can be a game changer.

The reality is that in the modern NBA this is irrelevant. Teams can run pick and rolls and target the opposing team's worst defender. So even if Deni is as good as you say, his defense is limited by the fact that you don't have to go at him directly. And if he can't be a legit shut down the opposing team's star player, then he has no purpose. So to be clear, you're setting Deni up to be a stopper in the playoffs. Players of the caliber of Kevin Durant, Damian Lillard, Steph Curry, Jayson Tatum, Joel Embiid, Nikola Jokic, Devin Booker etc Deni can lockdown.

If Deni can't shut down the opposing team's best offensive player - something that the best defensive players in the league cannot do, then I must ask what is his value? If for some weird reason he can't shut down Kevin Durant or Joel Embiid, then should Deni be on the floor? And what if opposing teams just get a switch onto a weak defender, how beneficial is this game-changing defense?

payitforward · Post #816 » by **payitforward** » Sun Nov 7, 2021 3:01 am

I must say... I don't know why you are over-drawing, over-dramatizing, over-stating so much in posts like this that are exclusively about Deni.

When nate started making the claim that Rui was a plus defender, you didn't come charging in to call that "irrelevant," did you? Leastways, I don't remember you doing it.

The guys who need to play better are Bradley Beal, Davis Bertans & Kyle Kuzma. Deni Avdija is doing fine -- &, no doubt, with plenty of room to improve. All the same, he's playing well.

gambitx777 · Post #817 » by **gambitx777** » Sun Nov 7, 2021 6:02 am

Now in the adales of history Toni Kukoč ended up being a pretty good NBA player. I see deni being a better Kukoč but deni needs to get better on the O end.

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DCZards · Post #818 » by **DCZards** » Sun Nov 7, 2021 6:07 am

WIZARDS LOVE WHEN TEAMS TEST AVDIJA'S DEFENSE

By Chase Hughes

Early in the fourth quarter of the Wizards' win over the Grizzlies on Friday night, Memphis big man Jaren Jackson Jr. ran out to the top of the key, caught a pass and turned around to face up with Wizards forward Deni Avdija. He dribbled back and forth before driving left, only to have Avdija trail him every inch of the way and force a missed left-handed hookshot.

It was one of several plays where Avdija was able to neutralize Jackson Jr., who is one of the league's most mobile big man, and one of many plays in the young 2021-22 season where Avdija's defense has stood out. He has become one of the most versatile defenders on the Wizards, who so far can count that end of the floor a strength, with the 10th-best defensive rating according to Basketball Reference.

Avdija has the second-best defensive field goal percentage on the team at 36.2%, second only to Bradley Beal. According to Second Spectrum, opponents shoot 5.4% lower against him compared to their season averages.

https://www.nbcsports.com/washington/wizards/teams-keep-testing-deni-avdija-defense-wizards-love-it?cid=sm_npd_rsn_dc_fb_mn&fbclid=IwAR3_l7zuXuGe3jJpXhx9MVr6ZjbxgoN-bvjpaGhG1-r5at-SkMkKZL9euGw

Post #819 » by **Ruzious** » Sun Nov 7, 2021 6:25 am

gambitx777 wrote:Now in the adales of history Toni Kukoč ended up being a pretty good NBA player. I see deni being a better Kukoč but deni needs to get better on the O end.

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It's not fair to compare them. Kukoc was a special offensive player. Granted, he was a forward in the NBA, but he was regarded as the best PG in all of Europe when he was there. He had to play 3rd fiddle in Chicago, only because they had Jordan and Pippen.

gambitx777 · Post #820 » by **gambitx777** » Sun Nov 7, 2021 7:01 am

Ruzious wrote:
gambitx777 wrote:Now in the adales of history Toni Kukoč ended up being a pretty good NBA player. I see deni being a better Kukoč but deni needs to get better on the O end.

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It's not fair to compare them. Kukoc was a special offensive player. Granted, he was a forward in the NBA, but he was regarded as the best PG in all of Europe when he was there. He had to play 3rd fiddle in Chicago, only because they had Jordan and Pippen.

I think it's fair. He was a good defender, as I recall. I was very young so maybe I'm missing some bits. But, in defence and passing ability they are very similar players. If deni can put a shot together I think they are very comparable .

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