11 minutes. That’s the time Danny Avdia spent tonight (between Sunday and Monday) on the floor in Washington’s second consecutive loss, 112:94 at Boston. Avdia played less than 2 minutes in the entire second half and finished the match with 6 points (2-for-4 from the field, 1-for-1 from three, 1-for-2 from the penalty), a rebound and an assist.
Avdia scored both of his field baskets, in a burst against Marcus Smart and outside the arc after a “pick and pop”, towards the end of the second quarter. The Israeli who started with five returned to the field when the gap was 19, and with the help of his five points, the guest managed to reduce the difference to single digits and eventually went into the break trailing by 11.
Despite the Wizards’ good minutes with Avdia, the latter did not make the top five at the start of the second half (Anthony Gill replaced him), did not participate in the third quarter and when he started the last quarter – returned to the bench in less than two minutes. The members of the media in the capital of the United States were also unable to understand the meaning of Wes Anseld Jr.’s decision, and at the press conference the reporter Ava Wallace from the “Washington Post” asked the coach if Avdia’s benching was due to any injury.
“No,” he answered her Anseld Jr. “I don’t think Danny played the way we wanted him to. He struggled defensively. It will happen on some nights, that’s fine. He’ll have another chance.” The young forward, who has yet to score in double figures or record more than 27 minutes in a game this season, will hope to prove otherwise to his coach already tomorrow (between Monday and Tuesday) when the Wizards host Philadelphia.
“I didn’t think he played the way we wanted him to… He’ll get another crack at it.”
Wes Unseld Jr. on Deni Avdija playing 11minutes vs. Boston???? pic.twitter.com/2bPuGJNisy
— NBC Sports Wizards (@NBCSWizards) October 31, 2022