San Francisco Chronicle - (Sunday)
Warriors eye forward with guard skills
In early April, while many of his fellow NBA prospects prepared for the draft in airconditioned gyms, Deni Avdija arrived at a military base outside Tel Aviv.
With Maccabi Tel Aviv’s season suspended because of the coronavirus pandemic, Avdija — a 6foot9, 220pound, 19yearold and soontobe lottery pick — began his countrymandated service in the Israel Defense Forces. For the next two weeks, he awoke at dawn, ate cafeteria food and crossed obstacle courses.
As Avdija now turns his focus toward the draft, he plans to complete the rest of his conscription stateside whenever his NBA career affords time. His version of service, however, will look quite different than that of many Israeli citizens. Instead of worrying about combat, Avdija figures to sit behind a desk.
Such are the perks of being the greatest NBA prospect in Israel’s history. A power forward with guard skills, Avdija has the size, versatility and playmaking ability that general managers covet. Mock
drafts project him to go in the top 10, with some prognosticators believing he could go as early as No. 2 to the Warriors.
This would be no small feat considering only two Israeliborn players — Omri Casspi (No. 23 pick, 2009) and T.J. Leaf (No. 18 pick, 2017) — have been drafted. Long viewed as the top international prospect in his age group, Avdija has become a teen idol of sorts to his basketballcrazed nation of 8.9 million people.
Fourteen months ago, after he led Israel to its second straight gold medal at the Under20 European Championship, Avdija stood before hundreds of fans in Tel Aviv as he sang songs with the crowd. The next day, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called Avdija to personally thank him for the joy he had brought the country.
Since then, Avdija hardly has been able to order a cappuccino at his local cafe without being asked to pose for photos. During Maccabi Tel Aviv’s media availabilities last season, former NBA players such as Casspi, Amar’e Stoudemire and Tyler Dorsey often watched a scrum of reporters pepper Avdija with questions about his influences, the draft and fame.
Never mind that he averaged only 4 points, 2.6 rebounds and 1.2 assists in 26 EuroLeague games. In Avdija, Israelis see someone capable of becoming the country’s first NBA AllStar.
“He’s the biggest thing in Israel,” said Elijah Bryant, one of Avdija’s former Maccabi Tel Aviv teammates. “It’s not like he’s the best in the state of Utah or the state of California; he’s the best for a whole country. Being the player for your country comes with a lot of attention and a lot of hype, but also a lot of pressure.”
Those close to Avdija, who wasn’t made available for this story, suggest the microscope he was under in Israel better prepared him for the NBA.
As a kid, he was coached by his father, Zufer, a former member of the Yugoslavian national team who was a captain for Red Star, now a Serbian powerhouse, before settling in Israel. At 16, Avdija signed a fouryear contract with Maccabi Tel Aviv’s senior team after three years in the club’s youth system.
Maccabi Tel Aviv, which boasts six EuroLeague titles and 54 Israeli League championships, is known to prioritize winning over player development. If Avdija missed a defensive rotation, flung up an illadvised shot or got bullied out of the post, head coach Giannis Sfairopoulos sat him.
This forced Avdija to be diligent in video study and the weight room. Over the course of last season, he gained about 20 pounds of muscle. The added bulk allowed him to make life difficult on opposing big men.
Though he played only sparingly in the ultracompetitive EuroLeague because league rules permitted Sfairopoulos to play as many foreigners as he wanted, Avdija became a goto option in the Israeli League — a level that allowed just five nonIsraeli players on a roster. His Israeli League averages of 13.5 points, 6.1 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game were enough to earn him league MVP honors.
As last season progressed, Avdija looked more and more comfortable in limited EuroLeague minutes.
Avdija’s onehanded dunk over Fenerbahce forward Luigi Datome was the talk of Tel Aviv for at least a day. When Sfairopoulos put Avdija on EuroLeague MVP Shane Larkin on the last play of an important game against Anadolu Efes, Avdija bumped off a screen and, without fouling, forced Larkin into an offkilter jumper that missed the rim and sealed a Maccabi Tel Aviv win.
“Not being afforded extra chances just because of his age, it made him come along really quick,” said Jake Cohen, who played the past three seasons with Avdija on Maccabi Tel Aviv. “Maybe if he had been treated like a young guy, he wouldn’t have adjusted as quickly.”
In addition to his more than 1,000 career EuroLeague and Israeli League minutes, Avdija has the two Under20 European Championship gold medals and two MVP awards from the NBA’s Basketball Without Borders events. This highlevel experience easily trumps what top prospects Anthony Edwards (32 games at Georgia), LaMelo Ball (12 games in Australia’s NBL) and James Wiseman (three games at Memphis) can tout.
But to become one of the best NBA players in this draft class, Avdija must improve from 3point range (27.7% in the EuroLeague last season), continue to add muscle and develop his ballhandling to the point where he can be a reliable secondary playmaker. If the Warriors take him, they’ll do so hoping he would help form a potent smallball lineup alongside Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Andrew Wiggins and Draymond Green.
“Honestly, I think Deni would be a perfect fit for Steve Kerr’s system,” said an NBA scout, who spoke under the condition of anonymity because he wasn’t authorized to talk publicly about the draft. “He has a great feel for the game, and he brings that swagger that someone like Draymond would love. I see him as kind of a Danilo Gallinari type.”
While getting changed after Maccabi Tel Aviv practices and games last season, Avdija often asked Casspi, Stoudemire, Dorsey and others about life in the NBA: What’s rookie hazing like? When do teams leave after road games? Is the food in the locker room good?
Avdija’s teammates didn’t mind. They, like the rest of Israel, knew he was bound for a long career stateside, one that probably won’t allow him to finish his military service anytime soon.
“There’s been so many times when I had to remind myself, ‘Man, this kid’s only 19,’ ” Cohen said. “You watch him play, and it can be easy to forget.”