The final quarter between the Knicks and Trail Blazers had come down to the wire. After trailing the Knicks for most of the game, the Blazers had the opportunity to take the lead. Then disaster struck. One of their best scorers, Deni Avdija had to walk off the floor. Without him, the Knicks extended their lead and won 123-114.

Deni Avdija had to leave the game with few minutes left in the final quarter. He appeared to tweak his back and was limping off the floor.

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He likely won’t be back this late in the game and his status is presumed questionable pending. We’d have to wait for Tiago Splitter to give an update on Avdija.

Despite the setback, the Blazers forward scored a team-high 25 points, only one point behind Jalen Brunson who had the most tonight. He tallied an additional 5 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 steals and a block while shooting 47% from the field and 80% from the free throw line across 38 minutes of action.

Avdija revealed he had a major scare before Friday’s game against Houston.He was in a car accident but fortunately came out unscathed and played the game just fine. It doesn’t seem like he had any injuries from that. At least he didn’t reveal anything.

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It appears to be a non-contact injury. He was not on the injury report befoe the game which doesn’t indicate if he aggravated an existing condition. He’s probably getting medically evaluated and we’d know what happened later.

Given the situation in Portland right now, Avdija probably doesn’t want to be out for a long stretch of time.

Deni Avdija’s health is key to Portland’s chances

The Portland Trail Blazers are the worst-hit team in the entire NBA at the start of 2026. Besides Damian Lillard ruled out for the rest of the season till his ACL recovers, the injury list is crowded with five other players. Jerami Grant (left Achilles tendonitis), Scoot Henderson (left hamstring tear), Matisse Thybulle (thumb injury), Kris Murray (back/ankle) and Blake Wesley (foot) were all ruled out before tonight’s game.

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Before this game Jrue Holiday was upgraded to probable while he still deals with calf strain in his right leg. He entered the game for limited minutes and backed up the starters with 8 points, 4 assists, and 2 rebounds. Given the state of the team, even this is plenty.

It’s Avdija who’s keeping the Blazers alive with injuries on court and drama off court this season. He’s averaging career highs 26.3 PPG (previous 16.9) and 7.0 APG (previous 3.9) while leading the league in free throws. He’s led Portland to five straight wins, including Friday’s 111-105 win over Houston.

Injuries have been a different kind of upset for the Israel-born forward. His promising career with the Wizards was severely limited by ankle troubles. He played only 54 games in his first season. The Wizards ultimately cut their losses with a gifted playmaker and sent him to Portland in 2024.

After a little period of adjustment, Avdija is on a breakout season. Washington fans even believe that maybe the Wizards jumped the gun.

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He’s kept this team thriving through the injury curse. The Splitter and the Blazers probably have every finger crossed his injury is not severe.

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