Deni Avdija had a 41-point outburst, including several clutch shots to seal tonight’s 114-110 win in the play-in tournament game between the Portland Trail Blazers and the Phoenix Suns.
He ended the night with 41 points, 12 assists, and 7 rebounds while shooting 15-22 from the field (68.2 FG%) and 3-8 from beyond the arc (37.5 3P%) to lead all scorers for the Trail Blazers tonight.
They are now set to face Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs, who were the second seed in the West, in the first round of the NBA playoffs. Following the game, Deni Avdija previewed their upcoming matchup with the crew of the Nightcap Show on Amazon Prime and expressed his opinions on facing the Spurs.
“I mean, they’re a great team, very talented. They’re young, too, so they don’t have a lot of playoff experience as well. It’s gonna be a fight, it’s going to be tough.”
“We’re going to bring everything we got, and I really believe in the guys; we can do anything that we want. Therefore, staying together and connected, we’ll be ready to play,” said a confident Avdija.
The Spurs beat the Trail Blazers in their regular season series 2-1 after winning their most recent game against them on April 8. But Deni Avdija had a strong and consistent performance against them throughout.
He averaged 31.7 points, 8.0 assists, and 7.3 rebounds while shooting 54.8% from the field and 52.9% from beyond the three-point line. Meanwhile, Victor Wembanyama averaged 24.6 points, 8.0 rebounds, and 4.8 blocks, while shooting 45.0% from the field and 41.9% from beyond the three-point line in those games.
It’s interesting to note that Victor Wembanyama was asked about playing with Deni Avdija during the All-Star weekend, and his initial observations involved pointing out that he knows Avdija draws a lot of fouls and looks to go to the free-throw line.
And now, in his remarks about the Spurs, Avdija responded by pointing out how their lack of experience could be used against them. It is still unlikely, in my opinion, that the Trail Blazers will beat the Spurs in a seven-game series, especially since even Portland’s current roster barely has any playoff experience.
Moreover, people tend to discount and forget about the former NBA champion Harrison Barnes and former All-Star De’Aaron Fox on the Spurs’ roster. They have plenty of playoff experience, which they can use to outsmart the Trail Blazers.
However, we could be witnessing the birth of an intense non-American rivalry in the NBA. Therefore, it will be interesting to see what happens between both of these teams in a seven-game series. Their first game is on Sunday, April 19.
