The Portland Trail Blazers earned a pair of wins over the Toronto Raptors and Washington Wizards after starting the week with an overtime loss to the New York Knicks.
With a string of impressive performances, there were many Blazers who stood out this week. However, none shone brighter than Deni Avdija, this week’s Blazer of the Week.
Avdija averaged 20.3 points, 9.0 rebounds and 4.3 assists per game this week while shooting 45.9% from the field and 47.6% from behind the arc. His offensive versatility has been incredibly valuable throughout the season, and during this week, and has been a major catalyst to many of Portland’s wins. His ability to function as an on-ball facilitator opens up the offense for players like Anfernee Simons and Shaedon Sharpe to be able to play off the ball and get catch-and-shoot chances.
Avdija’s skill on the defensive end also helps to limit opposing teams’ ability to play through their stars. Being able to matchup with players like Scottie Barnes and limit his offensive impact - both on his own and in tandem with Toumani Camara - makes the defensive load of others much easier to handle.
The play of Avdija was elite this week and the Blazers’ ability to take a pair of wins and almost beat a very good Knicks team was directly related to Avdija’s play on the court.
This week’s honorable mention is Donovan Clingan.
The rookie big man has been incredible while filling in for Deandre Ayton in the starting lineup. This week he averaged 7.3 points, 1.0 rebounds and 2.0 blocks per game while upping his minutes to 29.3 per game. The efficiency is a bit down from recent weeks, but his play as a defensive anchor for the Blazers has been very important in locking down the paint on opposing drives to the basket. His play has continued to improve as the season has worn on, and that is culminating in a very impressive stretch late in the year.
Let us know in the comments which Blazers players stood out most to you!