Deni Avdija Scouting Report: Discuss

[ansatsusha80]

This is the guy I want, but the shooting numbers do give me pause.

He fits well and would improve the defense and ball movement probably. His floor game looks a lot like Cedi to me. I think right now he is 19 and similar to what Cedi is right now. That could lead to an impressive player down the line. He might be Evan Turner tho

I think Gottlieb will help him tremendously...imo

 

[ansatsusha80]

 

[ansatsusha80]

Report: Cavs Have 'Done Extensive Work' on International Draft Prospect Deni Avdija - Cavaliers Nation

With the 2019-20 NBA season at a standstill due to the novel coronavirus, many are looking ahead to the upcoming 2020 NBA Draft. This has led to the revelation that the Cleveland Cavaliers are interested in draft prospect Deni Avdija.

www.cavaliersnation.com

 

[Sean King 87]

Well, I've been watching many live games of Avdija, so if you guys have any questions about his game style or potential, feel free to ask. As for now I just will address a few things.

About his shooting percentages. According to the official Israeli league site, he has 37.5% from the 3FG and 67.3% from the 2FG at 26.6 minutes per game. You can see the full stats here:

Deni Avdija

ISRAEL BASKETBALL SUPER LEAGUE | Israel Basketball | 2019-20 Season | Maccabi FOX Tel Aviv | Deni Avdija

basket.co.il

His FT% are indeed not good atm, but I'm less concern about it because his shooting mechanics looks great. Almost all his misses from the FT line were solid, I mean you wouldn't see the ball goes too far from the basket or looks like an awful attempt. To me his low percentages looks more of a lack of focus issue rather than a mechanics issue, which is something that can be fixed when becoming a bit more mature in the game.

One stat that really got my attention is his About Box Plus/Minus in the Israeli league. His plus minus is the second best in his team, which is to me pretty impressive considering the quality his roster has and the challenge to earn condifence from that spot.

I really believe in his talent. I think besides Anthony Edwards he's the guy I'd be the most confident to pick, considering all the highlights and few full games of other top prospects I've seen. But it's important to address I didn't watch a lot of full games of the other prospects, I mainly watched Lamelo, Deni, Edwards and Okongwu. As about the rest of the prospects in this draft I've seen only highlights.

Deni is being in a tough spot this year. His team Maccabi Tel Aviv brought a lot of talent to their team, and by nature as a contender team with a lot of pressure to win right now, they preferred to give major minutes to the guys they brought in a lot of money rather than giving it to a 19 years old guy who having his first full senior season (last year he still played in the youth team, although he occasionally had some games in the senior team) and more than likely will leave next year to the NBA, as he's not a part of their future building.

What happened later this year is that they had some major injuries and their coach had no choise but to 'throw him to the cold water'. since then Deni's role is much bigger and in the last 7 Euroleague games he averaged 20 minutes per game. But his offensive role was always limited, their coach (I think it's a big mistake by him) was leaning too much on some other veteran players and didn't use his advantages properly. From that spot it was really tough for Deni to show the qualities he has, knowing that every little mistake will make him thrown to the bench, yet he has some very nice games. I'd say what stood out to me the most is the way he stepped up his defensive game. A few months ago he was kinda a defensive hole. In the last months he became one of Maccabi's 2-3 best defenders. Just showing to me a sample of his ability to improve his weaknesses.

In short, his strengths according to what I've seen :
High BB IQ, great court view, good ball handle for his size, beautiful mechanics and a good shooting potential, good speed in transition, solid athleticism (not elite of course but also not bad), nice quickness for his size, good post game (can get the ball on the post and make a shot or a good pass depends on the situation), good team defense, very competitive/winning mentality.

Things he will have to improve to become a really good player at a NBA level:
To add more body strength and muscles, to work more on his lateral footwork, sharpen his 3 shooting while being in high game tempo, dare to penetrate to the rim more frequently (I think he has the skills for that), work more on his ball handle (mainly to gain more confidence, because he has a good handle but due to having a limited offensive role he's a bit lack of confidence on this regard), and working more on penetrating to the left side of the rim.

I'm sure I didn't cover everything and some things already been told here, but I hope it will help to get a little bit clearer image on his game.

 

[ansatsusha80]

A few highlights about on his defense.

 

[cavsLTU]

You can not draft European player with TOP5 pick if he proved nothing in Europe. I am saying it as an European who watches a lot of Euroleague basketball.

 

[cavsLTU]

Unless you want another Dragan Bender

 

[Cavatt]

Unless you want another Dragan Bender

Some highlights of Bender at 18. Really doesn't look like he is in Deni's league athletically or mentally. I'm not sure why people thought Bender had so much upside.

 

[cavsLTU]

Some highlights of Bender at 18. Really doesn't look like he is in Deni's league athletically or mentally. I'm not sure why people thought Bender had so much upside.

I do agree that Bender is kinda worst case scenario. However, Dani records 4 ppg average in Euroleague with very average shooting as a perimeter player. You just can not expect him to contribute in NBA any time soon when he cant show anything yet on a much worse level. He does have a lot of potential but in my opinion its just way too risky.

 

[Derek]

I think Beilein tried to rush him back for the season since he liked him alot...imo

There's really no evidence that he was rushed back.

He sat a significant amount of time after the initial diagnosis in training camp. Rehabbed, tried to play in some G-League games then shut it down.

 

[Derek]

You can not draft European player with TOP5 pick if he proved nothing in Europe. I am saying it as an European who watches a lot of Euroleague basketball.

To be fair, some of the successful top European picks never even played in the Euroleague. They were playing in lower-level leagues like the ACB or BBL and some were even in lower-level leagues than that. I'm sure you know how rare it is for a teenager to actually be a contributor to a Euroleague team. That's one fo the things that made Doncic really stand out.

 

[ansatsusha80]

There's really no evidence that he was rushed back.

He sat a significant amount of time after the initial diagnosis in training camp. Rehabbed, tried to play in some G-League games then shut it down.

You're probably right

 

[Nathan S]

I have my reservations about Deni, but as I suggested before I think people should be optimistic about his frame. He looks skinny playing next to grown men, but his listed weight of 219 lbs is already solid for a wing, and his frame looks like it could handle another 10-15 pounds of muscle. At the U20 Euro championships, where he was playing against guys his own age, he was ridiculously dominant on defense averaging 10.2 boards, 2.6 steals, and 3.0 blocks per 40. Other prospects listed at 6'9" ~220 include Obi Toppin, Paul Reed, and Precious Achiuwa, all of whom are a year+ older than Deni. The one way in which I think he'll be similar to Doncic is how he'll surprise fans with how he uses his combination of size and skill to make an impact.

 

[Cavatt]

I have my reservations about Deni, but as I suggested before I think people should be optimistic about his frame. He looks skinny playing next to grown men, but his listed weight of 219 lbs is already solid for a wing, and his frame looks like it could handle another 10-15 pounds of muscle. At the U20 Euro championships, where he was playing against guys his own age, he was ridiculously dominant on defense averaging 10.2 boards, 2.6 steals, and 3.0 blocks per 40. Other prospects listed at 6'9" ~220 include Obi Toppin, Paul Reed, and Precious Achiuwa, all of whom are a year+ older than Deni. The one way in which I think he'll be similar to Doncic is how he'll surprise fans with how he uses his combination of size and skill to make an impact.

What do you think his upside is? 14 pts a game with good playmaking and defense?

I don't see him as a #1 option

 

[ajz20]

What do you think his upside is? 14 pts a game with good playmaking and defense?

I don't see him as a #1 option

Upside from what I have read is solid nba starter in his prime but not a guy you want to have to lead the team in scoring.

I think at worst he can be backup wing. Big question is going to be perimeter shooting.