Scouting Report: Deni Avdija

Player Profile: 

Draft Age: 19.46 years (January 3rd, 2001).

Projected Role: 2-way multi-positional ‘glue guy’, Secondary Playmaker, 3-Position Defender.

Background: Israeli Deni Avdija drew a ton of NBA attention from his play in the FIBA U20 Tournament. He earned All-Star-Five (2018/19 at age 17/18) and eventual MVP honors in 2019 (age 18). Thereafter, he and Yam Madar led Israel to become the gold medalists. Avdija won MVP honors at the 2019 Basketball Without Borders All-Star Game. He now plays for Maccabi Tel Aviv B.C. Historically, he has functioned as a guard offensively.  However, he has a more off-ball role at MTABC while being able to defend the perimeter and 4 spot.

Personality: What people love about Deni is his confidence. and intensity. He has an abundance of confidence on the court and feeds off the crowd. Avdija holds his teammates to a high standard but easily becomes frustrated/emotional. Off the court, he revels in the spotlight. He will enjoy the spotlight the NBA has to offer. Also, he likes to say he has a killer instinct. However, he has documented lapses in energy on both ends when not in control.  Furthermore, he has not had much true adversity in his life. Thusly, the transition to America and the NBA may be more difficult for him than other INTL prospects.

Athleticism: Avdija is very quick in the open court for his size. Consequently, he is rather coordinated with a notably quick first step. He’s an adequate leaper in space off of one foot.  Also, he elevates quickly off one or from a standstill. Avdija moves well laterally for a big as well. This will undoubtedly, aid his unique ability to defend and attack multiple positions. He can be too quick for bigs and too big for guards. However, he does lack elite explosiveness.

Projected Landing: NBA Starter, pick 5-12 selection.

Stats for Maccabi Tel Aviv (Via Tankathon as of 12/29/19)

Offense:

Strengths:

• All Around Impact/Presence: Avdija’s versatility on the offensive end is perhaps his greatest offensive strength. He can fit into various roles and adapt his game based on team needs. He provides production in all areas of the game. He can do a bit of everything. As his shot develops further, he will become more valuable as a versatile offensive weapon.
• Glue Guy Playmaker Fit: Deni does some of everything on the offensive end. Therefore, it is safe to assume that a glue-guy role will be where he is best offensively. Limiting him to a spot-up shooter would not do his skills justice.  He should be manipulating pick and rolls, creating mismatches, and breaking down defenses for shooters. The way he will be utilized will be key to his development.
• Finishing Potential: I like Deni’s upside as a finisher because he gets up quickly on dunks off one foot. He has nice touch that could develop into an array of touch shots. His strength as a finisher needs to improve. However, his ability to get downhill is evident and promising for an NBA guard his size. He needs a floater game to emerge as well.
• Playmaking Ability: Avdija is a rather versatile playmaker. He can navigate P&R well for a wing. Also, he can create shots for others in a myriad of half-court settings. He also flashes the coveted live dribble passing ability. He has solid intuition, especially in the open court. When he’s in control. he can throw some beautiful passes from anywhere.
• Handle: While he is very right-hand dominant, he has quite a handle in the open court. However, when forced left, he is not nearly as comfortable attacking. Yet, his handle does allow him to push the pace off of defensive rebounds. Also, it allows him to take defenders off the dribble. Deni has also flashed the ability to set up his off-dribble pull-up, though it is still developing.
• Open Court Offense: Avdija is lethal in transition with his size, speed, handle, and passing. He also likes to push the pace out of steals/rebounds.
• On/Off Ball Scoring Potential: Avdija has a strong enough feel/IQ to effectively understand how to move off the ball. He employs effective, decisive cuts and gets to his shooting spots effectively. His role with Maccabi has been more off the ball, where he is less comfortable/effective. However, in time he could be a much better spot-up shooter.

Improvement Areas:

• Shooting Consistency: While he has had flashes, Deni has not proven that he can be a consistent threat from deep. His form is a work in progress. He is very streaky and has the tendency to swing his right leg in front at times. The form is not always consistent, but he does have a natural release with his upper body. Improved footwork and repetition should help his development. Also, his recent hot streaks are encouraging.
• Free Throw Shooting: Avdija has a low free throw rate for someone who can get downhill in the lane as easily as he can, and at roughly 53% from the line, this is a red flag. For someone who primarily relies on straight-line drives, this is a worrying statistic for scoring translation if he cannot consistently get easy points at the line.
• Post Game: Has good flashes and control but needs to diversify if he hopes to use the post at the NBA level. I’d like to see him face up more, as his higher release could give the option to play make.
• Finishing Versatility: Avdija still relies on straight-line drives to finish on the interior. With his size/agility, he should be doing much more in the lane. He seldom utilizes his floaters or any euro-steps. While his touch and angle usage are promising, he needs to diversify his finishing. If he doesn’t, he may struggle to finish through NBA-level defenders. His scoring may take a while to translate without a high free throw percentage and predictable finishing.

Defense:

Strengths:

• High-Level Anticipation: Avdija has active hands, seems to get a lot of deflections, and flashes solid timing on blocks. He can read offensive sets before they occur and position himself to make a play. When he is focused on the defensive end, he can also be a major disruptor.
• Interior Defense (On/Off ball): Deni has a great sense for defensive rotations. He often makes the right play rotating to double or rise up for a block on the interior. His value on the defensive end is enhanced by his ability to defend both POA and off the ball. Avdija has flashed the instinct to stay vertical through contact while in the air. His anticipation allows him to be an effective help defender down low as he often rotates across the lane for blocks/deflections.
• Defensive Presence/Impact: Avdija makes many winning plays on the defensive end, and his versatility & IQ allow him to be used at multiple positions. With added bulk and improved footwork, he could consistently defend 4 positions at an NBA level.
• Rebounding: Deni puts up a solid contribution on the defensive glass. He plays the 4/interior often defensively yet boxes out guards. With that being said, this is a key part of his impact. It often allows him to set up transition plays where his open-court offense shines. His impact on the glass is a plus for a perimeter-based offensive player. Although he is a more feel-over-physicality rebounder.

Improvement Areas:

• Physicality/Bulk: I’d like to see Deni bulk up more to maximize his potential on both ends. His frame still has a lot of space to fill out, and added bulk will be imperative for him. He could struggle early on against the strength of NBA 3s/4s. I believe with added strength, his physicality will improve as well. He already has high confidence and would make a nice jump.
• Fouling on Drives: Deni can get pushed around by offensive players on drives. He also gets pushed around in the post. Sometimes, he does not always react well to contact. On blow-bys his reactions (especially footwork) can be a bit slow. As seen on tape, he does not always turn quickly enough to stay with his man. This results in some silly and unnecessary fouls.

Overall Outlook:

Avdija is still an upside-based prospect, as he is quite young. He also has a ton of room to grow regarding his shooting and body. His current two-way versatility is already enticing enough for him to project as a high-value player. However, in time, he could become a stat sheet stuffer. His value will be evident in his defensive versatility, open-court offense, and playmaking. Because of this, I believe that he can be a capable shooter and scorer in time.

Points of Consideration:

As the skill is there, he needs to be put on a hard-weight program for discipline and to push his versatility even further. Still, the body/mind needs to be continuously elevated for him to achieve his potential. Has not had a lot of notable adversity in his life… great body improvement would do wonders for his transition, I believe… Moving to the USA will be his first time living away from his family/country. Deni is not like Doncic and will need much more time to transition to the NBA.