Deni Avdija delivered a star turn Wednesday morning, pouring in 41 points and handing out 12 assists to lead Portland past Phoenix 114-110 on the road in the NBA play-in and make history as the first Israeli player to reach the NBA playoffs.
Avdija came up huge in the biggest game of the season, stuffing the stat sheet with seven rebounds, two blocks and five turnovers while knocking down clutch buckets throughout crunch time. He shot 15 of 22 from the field, 3 of 8 from 3-point range and 8 of 13 from the free-throw line after steadying himself there following several misses.
With Portland trailing 110-109, Avdija attacked the rim with 16.1 seconds left, finished through contact and drew the foul on Dillon Brooks for a three-point play that put the Trail Blazers back in front 112-110. Portland then got the stop it needed, Phoenix missed on the other end and Jerami Grant hammered home a dunk to seal the win and send the Blazers to their first playoff appearance since the 2020-21 season.
After a somewhat tentative start, Avdija found his rhythm and looked every bit like an All-Star. Phoenix led 33-31 after the first quarter, but Avdija sparked a Portland surge in the second and helped push the Blazers ahead 55-41. The Suns clawed back behind strong play from Jalen Green and Brooks, but Avdija again took control in the third quarter, helping Portland rebuild a double-digit lead.
Phoenix closed the gap to 83-82 by the end of the third as Devin Booker got rolling, and the fourth quarter turned into a wild back-and-forth finish. The Suns opened the period on a 10-0 run while Portland went scoreless for five minutes. Avdija kept the Blazers within striking distance with big plays at both ends, trimming the deficit to three.
Phoenix later stretched its lead to 105-97, but Shaedon Sharpe and Grant answered, and Portland suddenly moved in front 107-106. From there, Avdija took over. After Booker put Phoenix back ahead, Avdija drove to the basket and scored to make it 109-108 with 37 seconds remaining. Jordan Goodwin then swung the lead back to the Suns before Avdija’s decisive drive and three-point play in the closing seconds.
Although he finished two points shy of matching his career high, it was arguably the biggest game of Avdija’s career. He delivered every time Portland needed a bucket, operating at a high level under playoff pressure, on the road, against top-level talent and amid what the report described as tight officiating.
Avdija was Portland’s leading scorer. Jrue Holiday, who arrived from Boston in the offseason and missed large portions of the season with injuries, added 21 important points for the Blazers. Grant scored 16 and Sharpe had 12. Toumani Camara finished with eight points in a quieter outing.
For Phoenix, Green had 35 points, Brooks scored 20, including 16 in the first half, and Booker added 22, but it was not enough.
The Suns still have another chance to reach the playoffs. They are set to play in two days for the Western Conference’s No. 8 seed against the winner of the play-in game between the Los Angeles Clippers and Golden State Warriors.