The Washington Wizards American basketball team is parting ways with Israeli forward Deni Avdija after four
seasons, trading the 23-year-old to the Portland Trail Blazers in a move that reportedly came as a surprise.
The Wizards will receive guard Malcolm Brogdon, the No. 14 pick in the upcoming NBA draft, and an additional pick in
2029, the NBA website reported Thursday.
Avdija finished sixth in the voting for the Most Improved Player award for this past year.
Over the past season, the 2.06-meter (six-foot-nine-inch) player averaged 14.7 points and 7.2 rebounds while shooting 37.4% from 3-point range, according to the NBA report.
The Ynet website reported that the decision to waive him was the first one made by Troy Weaver, the former general manager of Detroit, who at the
beginning of the week joined the Wizards as a senior adviser. Weaver decided on the move along with Wizards’s president Michael Winger and
general manager Will Dawkins. Weaver’s arrival apparently changed the view that Avdija is important to the future of the team, with the adviser having his eye on other players, the report said.
However, according to the Israeli outlet, some Wizards fans have been critical of the development, which they see as a mistake.
Avdija may be offered a place in the top five at the Blazers, where scorer Jeremy Grant is expected to switch to another team, the Walla outlet reported.
The Blazers finished at the bottom of the rankings in the last season of the NBA’s Western Conference.
While at the Wizards, Avdija played 287 games and averaged 9.8 points, 6 rebounds and 2.5 assists, the report said.
