The Portland Trail Blazers have a real ace in Deni Avdija. Currently, he is averaging 26.0 points, 6.5 rebounds, and 4.8 assists per game.

However, he came up woefully short when the game was on the line against the Dallas Mavericks on Sunday. With the seconds ticking down and the game tied at 118, Avdija stumbled and threw up an off-balance airball that took the game into overtime.

Ultimately, the Blazers lost 138-133 and are now 6-7.

Afteward, Avdija took accountability for the missed attempt, per Sean Highkin of the Rose Garden Report.

“I take responsibility for that last shot. I could have done better,” he said. “It's on me. I wasted the clock too much and went for that three. I should have either drove a little bit or gotten closer. But I'm learning from it. I should have been smarter.”

Avdija has been with Portland since last year. Previously, he played four seasons (2020-2024) with the Washington Wizards. In July, Avdija was traded from the Wizards to the Blazers. Last season, Avdija averaged 16.9 points and 7.2 rebounds per game in his first season in Portland.

Altogether, Avdija is an effective playmaker, a great transition player, and a strong driver to the basket.

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Deni Avdija made an impact on the Israeli national team

Before he made his way to the NBA, Avdija was an exceptional talent in his home country of Israel. His stomping ground was playing for the youth national team and later the senior national team.

In 2018 and 2019, he led Israel to back-to-back gold medals at the FIBA U20 European Championships. He received the MVP honors during the 2019 tournament.

Additionally, he helped lead Maccabi Tel Aviv to three Israeli League championships between 2018 and 2020.

Also, he was the MVP of the Basketball Without Borders Europe and Global camps in 2019 and 2020.

In 2020, Avdija was drafted by the Wizards as the ninth overall pick in the NBA Draft.