Deni Avdija's star ascension has been the most encouraging development of the 2025-26 season for the Portland Trail Blazers. A scary thought for the rest of the league is that Avdija is doing all of this despite Portland failing to surround him with the necessary pieces, particularly in the shooting department.
The Blazers rank second-worst in the league in three-point shooting (33.5%). That should come as no surprise, as they finished in the bottom five in each of the past two seasons and lost sharpshooting combo guard Anfernee Simons over the summer.
Blazers must surround Deni Avdija with more shooting
Avdija has embraced a point-forward role and stepped up tremendously for the Blazers' depleted backcourt that remains without Scoot Henderson, Jrue Holiday, and Blake Wesley.