More than 2.2 million fans voted for his inclusion; more than global superstars such as LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Kawhi Leonard and James Harden received.<\/p>\n
For a player who initially harboured modest ambitions for his career in the sport, being selected to the All-Star game feels almost unreal.<\/p>\n
\u201cI started playing basketball without a dream, just to pursue it and see wherever it would take me,\u201d Avdija said. \u201cIt\u2019s hard to believe that you accomplish thing after thing after thing. It\u2019s emotional for me. I\u2019m really happy that I\u2019m able to be an All-Star.\u201d<\/p>\n
Avdija is enjoying an outstanding breakout season as he averages 25.5 points, 7.2 rebounds and 6.7 assists. He is the undeniable superstar of Portland, who were deemed a weak team early in the season\u00a0but, under Deni’s leadership, have now won 26 of their 56 matches and might now even advance to the playoffs.<\/p>\n
Across Israel, anticipation is building ahead to tonight\u2019s match. Hundreds of thousands are expected to stay up through the night to watch the game live despite the time difference while thousands more Israelis and Jews from around the world are heading to Los Angeles\u2019 Intuit Dome \u2013\u00a0one of the NBA\u2019s newest and most advanced arenas\u00a0\u2013 to witness the occasion in person.<\/p>\n
President Isaac Herzog congratulated Avdija on X, calling him \u201ca true source of Israeli pride\u201d and \u201ca great inspiration, showing everyone that it is possible to aim high and realise their dreams\u201d.<\/p>\n
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also praised\u00a0the player, writing: \u201cDeni, every time you step onto the court, our country beams with pride. For the People of Israel you aren\u2019t just any star \u2013\u00a0you are OUR Star of David!\u201d<\/p>\n
Avdija was raised and shaped at Maccabi Tel Aviv, Israel\u2019s flagship sports club \u2014 an institution that has won the European Championship six times but until now has never before produced an NBA All-Star.<\/p>\n
Maccabi Tel Aviv president Shimon Mizrahi told the JC: \u201cThis is a tremendous source of pride for us and a moment of real happiness. But beyond his outstanding talent, what truly sets Deni apart is his humility. He carries himself with modesty and with a deep sense of responsibility. He makes it clear that he represents not only himself or his team, but the State of Israel and Jews around the world. Many of them see in him something they have never seen before \u2014 an athlete from our community reaching the highest stage in the world\u2019s most popular league.\u201d<\/p>\n
On the All-Star court, Avdija will share the spotlight with some of basketball\u2019s biggest names: Nikola Joki\u0107, Victor Wembanyama, Stephen Curry and Giannis Antetokounmpo. For Israel \u2013 a country not traditionally associated with global basketball dominance \u2013 the symbolism is striking.<\/p>\n
Avdija\u2019s journey to this stage was anything but predictable. Born in Herzliya to a kibbutz-born mother and a Serbian father, he initially played football before a dramatic growth spurt redirected him toward basketball. His father, Zufer Avdija, a former professional player of Serbian origin, is Muslim. Deni has spoken openly about his identity, saying he considers himself Jewish while embracing his dual Jewish and Muslim heritage.<\/p>\n
Throughout his NBA career, Avdija has expressed his connection to Israel publicly. While playing for the Washington Wizards, he marked Israel\u2019s Holocaust Remembrance Day by writing \u201cYizkor\u201d (\u201cwill remember\u201d) in Hebrew on his shoes. On another occasion, he wrote \u201cAm Yisrael Chai\u201d (\u201cthe Jewish people live\u201d) and drew Stars of David on his shoes.<\/p>\n
But representing Israel on the global stage has also brought scrutiny.<\/p>\n
As tensions in the Middle East reverberated internationally, Avdija became the target of online attacks tied to his nationality and his mandatory military service in the Israel Defence Forces.<\/p>\n
Some widely circulated posts accused him of being complicit in political and military decisions, drawing thousands of reactions and shares.<\/p>\n
In interviews in the United States, Avdija addressed the criticism directly.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m an athlete. I don\u2019t really get into politics, because it\u2019s not my job,\u201d he said. \u201cI obviously stand for my country, because that\u2019s where I\u2019m from. It\u2019s frustrating to see all the hate. Why can\u2019t I just be a good basketball player? Why does it matter if I\u2019m from Israel?<\/p>\n
\u201cAll this hate\u2026 for no reason. Like, I\u2019m deciding things in the world.\u201d<\/p>\n
Even the public congratulations from Israeli leaders sparked debate abroad. Australia\u2019s ABC published a profile questioning whether political endorsements could complicate his global image, noting that high-level political attention can sometimes intensify existing tensions.<\/p>\n
Avdija did not directly respond to either the praise or the criticism surrounding it. Instead, he returned to a simple message.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m a proud Israeli,\u201d he said. \u201cI wouldn\u2019t be where I am today without Israel and the people who supported me.\u201d<\/p>\n
Tonight, when Avdija steps onto the All-Star court, he will do so as one of the NBA\u2019s elite \u2013\u00a0and as a symbol far larger than himself. For millions watching in the middle of the night back home, the moment represents more than basketball.<\/p>\n
It represents arrival.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"More than 2.2 million fans voted for his inclusion; more than global superstars such as LeBron James, Kevin…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":292846,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[4290,42,46,43,105,40,38,41,39],"class_list":["post-292845","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-headlines","tag-basketball","tag-headlines","tag-israel","tag-news","tag-sports","tag-top-news","tag-top-stories","tag-topnews","tag-topstories"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/292845","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=292845"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/292845\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/292846"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=292845"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=292845"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=292845"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}