Deni Avdija is headed to Washington D.C. The Wizards selected the 19-year-old with the No. 9 overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft.
Deni Avdija gets selected 9th overall by the @WashWizards!
— NBA (@NBA) November 19, 2020
2020 #NBADraft presented by State Farm on ESPN pic.twitter.com/qBUDa4YErG
Born in Beit Zera, Israel, Avdija already has multiple years of professional basketball on his resume.
He has been playing for the illustrious Israeli franchise of Maccabi Tel Aviv since 2017. In the three years with the club, he's become a 3-time Israeli League champion and won the 2017 Israeli Cup. In the most recent 2019-20 season, he became the youngest player to ever win the Israeli League MVP award while also being named the Israeli League Player of the Year, receiving an All-Israeli League First Team selection.
MORE: Fast facts on Deni Avdija
As a young prospect, Avdija was named MVP in two Basketball Without Borders camps – BWB Europe 2018 in Belgrade, Serbia and BWB Global 2019 in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Internationally, he represents Israel and has been a member of two gold medal-winning squads – the 2018 FIBA U20 European Championship in Germany and the 2019 FIBA U20 European Championship in Israel.
In his scouting report, NBA.com Draft expert Eric Fawcett had a glowing outlook for Avdija as a prospect:
"Yes, Avdija plays with the typical fundamentals and polish we've seen from European talent but it's the blend of those skills and North American boldness that makes him so enticing. That, and the fact he plays with unmistakable finesse at 6-foot-9 makes him one of the most fascinating players in the class."
With this pick, the Wizards seem to be building their future around two international young wings in Rui Hachimura and Avdija to go along with their current star-studded backcourt of John Wall and Bradley Beal.
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