The Blazers Accidentally Found a Star

The Blazers Accidentally Found a Star

Denny Aia was an NBA role player, no doubt. Okay, he slipped from fourth to ninth for a reason. First years in DC just like they thought. Pretty good. Nothing special. But then all of a sudden it happened. After a trade to Portland, Abia started putting up huge numbers like 36 against the Denver Nuggets. But watch this. Against LA, Denny starts a fast break facing two Lakers, Austin Reeves and LeBron James. But it turns out Denny already knew what was coming. LeBron slows down to get in position for his signature chase down block. You know, the one that won Cleveland a championship block by James, but Denny expertly times a hesitation, sending both LeBron and Dorian Finny Smith flying. Afterward, the kid points at both like, gotcha. Where did all that IQ and attitude come from a role player? Well, it turns out the entire NBA was wrong about Denny Ovia. He is now the best player on a Blazers team pushing for playoffs in the West. But how did that happen? Denny was literally an overseas phenom like Luca Donuch turned pro at 16 like Luca league MVP before the NBA. So what is it that made him so overlooked and disrespected until now? But you guys have been loving My Fit Foods, which I love because My Fit Foods is how I stay in shape all year long while not feeling like I’m restricted in my diet or bored because they have new meals that they mix in every single month. Trust me, I have tried like a hundred of these meal prep places. My Fit Foods is by far the best I have ever tried. And you can walk into any of their stores in Houston, Portland, or Denver. And be sure to use my code AMH25 for 25% off your order at My Fit Foods. It helps out the channel, lets them know that you came from me. Again, that is code AMH25. Well, Denny was born in the tiny Betzer, Israel to a basketball playing mom and dad. In fact, his dad played for the Yugoslavia national team, which is a big deal, finished as a pro in Israel. At first, Denny loved soccer, but he was so naturally good that a local pro team scooped him up for their youth squad. By 16, he was the youngest player ever for Macabi Tel Aviv. And Makabi ain’t any old team, okay? They’ve won the most national titles in league history. Six Euro League titles, which ranks fourth all time. So, being their youngest player ever is a big deal. Just three years later, he led Makabe to another title, one league MVP. So, next step, NBA draft. Denny was projected as high as fourth behind Aunt James Wisman and LaMelo, but he fell all the way to ninth on the Wizards. And that fall was immense. Front officers were scared off by a lack of athleticism, questionable shot, and having no defined position, which ironically are all the things that now make him special, but we’ll get there. Also, what no one wants to mention was a cultural bias whispered about, not in like a malicious way, but just historically. Israeli players were not taken seriously as star prospects. Denny had to break through that ceiling, too. Now, Nine was the highest drafted Israeli player ever. But that fall hurt him big time because Denny is the perfect example of how getting drafted to the wrong team can hurt or even ruin a player. The reality was DC a horrible place to develop. They had a bunch of mediocre star vets who needed the ball. So draft Denny to be a big wing creator late game closer. Then immediately ask him to go stand in the corner free and D give the balls instead to guys like Bradley Beal, Kyle Kosma, Russell Westbrook, Chris Osping, and Jordan P. Denny got boxed into the wrong identity which then seemed to validate the people who said that his skills wouldn’t translate. So by year four on a toxic franchise, Denny was already the longest tenur player on the roster and only got a four-year $55 million contract. That is less money than Zack Collins, Grayson Allen, Terrence Man. So even if you say, “No, we always knew Denny was special. We saw flashes.” The contract says otherwise. Four years role player. It was so bad that when DC traded him to the Blazers on draft night, local media was happy he was gone. I think the Wizards are selling high on Denny Oia. There is a ceiling there that is lower than people want to admit when it comes to his role in a winning team. Yes, he’s the fourth, fifth best player on a winning team. He’s not your third star. Denny Aia by Wizards fans is overrated. Wow. But the crazy part is that opinion was correct at first. So the trade was the Blazers get Denny for Malcolm Brogden, Bob Carrington a 2029 first in 2 seconds. So that is a lot and at first the pressure was actually too much. Sometimes we don’t realize the personal connections that people make are completely destroyed overnight and especially for someone who’s from overseas in the US. It hurts. Reminds you of the heartbreak that Luca went through. It was night time at my place in Israel and I woke up. I saw I got traded. It was very hard for me. All the friendships that I had with the guys there in the city, the fans disappeared in a second. And it was so tough that Portland benched Denny for not playing well. Chanty Bilips said, “Take a break. Find your footing in the offense.” And once he did, the breakout was electric. March 10th, Denny dropped 34 with 16 boards and six dimes on the Warriors. And that was a new Jimmy Warriors. Okay, we’re dominating. 2 days later, 275 and five against New York. So, he’s stuffing the stat sheet. I am sorry, but every piece of evidence had predicted this. the elite overseas prospect, MVP of the Israeli League, MVP of the FIA U20 tournament, dominant as a teenager against grown men. How stupid were the Wizards for letting him go? But if they thought this was a fluke, he stepped up again this year. If voting now, Denny would be an NBA Allstar. So that’s what he looks like when allowed to be himself. And what does that look like on the court? Well, with the ball, Denny does his best work attacking the basket. And so far this year, he’s been taking 8.2 shots at the rim per game. Third most for all guards and wings behind only Cade and Amen Thompson. Physically, he’s got a unique blend of quickness, strength, and agility. For example, one of his go-to moves has been this low pickup where once he feels the defense leaning outside his frame, he’s going to snap the ball through and extend to the rim with two steps. Right off the catch here, he’s going to attack toward the middle. And as this defender turns and opens up his hips, that’s going to be another low gather for Denny back to his left. And while playing with a head of steam, Denny also loves to initiate contact. He’ll often throw his inside shoulder into the defense to then bump through and muscle his way into finishes. But while attacking the basket, Denny is also very good playing off two feet. That is an underrated skill cuz playing off two feet leads to less turnovers cuz you got better overall shots. Only bigger guards can do it consistent. So here he is going to attack the defense with a head of steam but initiate contact then play off two feet to finish. So, because Denny is a bigger and highly skilled 68230 ball handler, that naturally makes him a matchup problem for the defense. These small dudes got no chance against him one-on-one, but he is still growing as a player. Okay, if I had to nitpick, it would be finishing with his left hand. This play, for example, check out Daniel Gaffford. He is smart. He is going to shade Denny’s right because he knows that’s his weakness. Sure enough, Denny tries to force it and a block. But one of his biggest improvements has been shooting off the catch. 44% which is elite. Overall, he’s shooting 38% on 6.7 attempts and his shot diet is great, too. To round out his offense is passing. Danny has a good feel of reading the defense and finding the open man. But one thing holding him back there is his team honestly cuz right now the Blazers as a whole are shooting just 32.4% from three. That is third lowest in the NBA. That gives the offball defense a license to load up in the paint and just live with these spray out threes. I think if the roster got a talent boost, Denny could easily be north of eight assists per game. Now, when switching over, looking at his defense, he’s made a lot of improvement there. King guard one through five. Even though the tools are there, he can have a lack of focus. But still, the Wizards traded a likely allstar on the best contract in the NBA. And it’s only because they doubted him after being miscast as a role player. But it turns out Portland is the first time anyone in the NBA actually let him be himself. But another young guy who’s looking for a second chance is LaMelo Bull. There are now trade rumors that LaMelo actually denied. But one report says this story is not going away.

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This Deni Avdija situation has been brewing in Portland and now it looks like the underrated “role player” is about to become a first time All-Star. This video looks at how he went from a guy the Wizards didn’t want to keep to the best player on the Trail Blazers.

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