The Washington Wizards have had their eyes on Deni Avdija since he was 16 years old. The franchise’s scouts and executives traveled the world to watch the Israeli teenager play, including most recently in Belgrade, Serbia, before the pandemic.
So when Avdija, now 19, fell to the ninth pick in Wednesday’s NBA draft, Wizards general manager Tommy Sheppard could hardly contain his excitement.
“(Sheppard) was so fired up,” coach Scott Brooks said. I thought he was going to be like Carl Lewis and run a 100 in 9.3.”
Sheppard wasn’t the only one excited.