Danny Avdia, the new star of the Blazers who drives his opponents crazy

With 41 points against the Rockets, Danny Avdia he signed his season record and the second best mark in the NBA. The Israeli winger scored 43 points two years ago under the colors of the Wizards. The difference? This is no longer an isolated feat as his scoring average has exploded this season.

The evolution was gradual over his first five years before going from 16.9 points per game during his first campaign with the Blazers last year to 26.3 points per game during this 2025/26 season!

This ranks him 15th in scoring in the NBA, ahead of Kevin Durant (26.1) and Devin Booker (25.4). That’s because Portland has given him the keys to his offense, especially since Danny Awdia attracts whistles like a magnet. He is the player who shot the most free throws this season (378).

Only Luka Dončić (12.2) even shoots more free throws on average than him (9.9). At the end of November, he even went to the free throw line 23 times against the Thunder, and Mark Deno admitted that he was a nightmare…

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“Danny Avdija shot 23 free throws and every time that happens we have to look at what we did first” the Oklahoma City coach explained. “This is the reality. We could have done a better job against him, in terms of executing the game plan, so he faced more players.”

However, the coach noted that the Blazers’ play was designed to draw attention to Danny Avdia.

“He has all the tricks to punish you when you are not in a legal position”

“Tonight he attacked a lot in isolation, especially in the first half, and the three referees stare at him when he does that.” explained Marc Daigneault. “And then Danny Awdia is a very good player. He’s proven that, especially this season. He attacks the rim very well. He has all the tricks to punish you when you’re not in a legal position. So it’s very, very difficult to contain that.”

Without being particularly quick and explosive, the Israeli thus manages to take advantage of the generosity given by the referees to attackers, who often recover from fouls when attacking their defenders to the body.

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This obviously isn’t the only explanation for the Blazers’ statistical explosion, but he’s currently one of the best exploiters of whistle cuts on penetration, moving the ball and adjusting course to his defender’s shift, often forcing referees to generate contact on the whistle.

Moreover, when we asked Tara Eason making it difficult for Danny Avdi to defend, the Rockets winger responded with two words: “Zebra”.

more talkative, Kevin Durant greeted his opponent. “He’s a star now. His biggest strength is attacking the racquet to shoot. And that opens up a lot of things for him. It also softens the defense because we can’t be as physical as we’d like. We can’t use our hands against players like that because they make you pay. But I love what Danny’s doing this year. I just hope they’re miserable next time we come up against us. games. »

How to read statistics? MJ = matches played; Min = Minute; Shots = Shots Successful / Shots Attempted; 3 points = 3 points / attempt 3 points; LF = free throws made / free throws attempted; Off = offensive rebound; Def=defensive jump; Tot = Total number of jumps; Pd = assists; Fte: Personal mistakes; Int = intercepts; Bp = lost balls; Ct: Against; Points = Points.