{"id":293300,"date":"2026-02-16T00:23:13","date_gmt":"2026-02-16T00:23:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/293300\/"},"modified":"2026-02-16T00:23:13","modified_gmt":"2026-02-16T00:23:13","slug":"lebron-james-praises-avdija-for-exceptional-season-says-hed-love-to-visit-israel","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/293300\/","title":{"rendered":"LeBron James praises Avdija for ‘exceptional season,’ says he\u2019d love to visit Israel"},"content":{"rendered":"

The NBA All-Star Game is set to tip off at midnight Israel time between Sunday and Monday, and for fans in Israel the spotlight is firmly on Deni Avdija<\/a>.The Portland Trail Blazers forward will make history as the first player from Israel<\/a> to appear in the NBA All-Star Game, capping a breakout season that has propelled him into the league\u2019s elite.<\/p>\n

LeBron James praises Deni Avdija for ‘exceptional season,’ says he\u2019d love to visit Israel<\/p>\n

(Video: Ayala Orel)<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

On the eve of the game, Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James \u2014 making his 22nd All-Star appearance \u2014 was asked about Avdija during a news conference and offered emphatic praise.<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, I\u2019ve been quoted on Danny already,\u201d James said. \u201cThey asked me what I thought about the season. I said I believe he was an All-Star \u2014 and I mean, he was an All-Star. He\u2019s playing exceptional basketball. So that\u2019s that.\u201d<\/p>\n

James added that he hopes his success resonates with fans in Israel.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf I have fans over there \u2014 I\u2019ve never been there \u2014 if I have fans over there, then I hope I inspire people over there not only to want to be great in sports, but to be better in general in life,\u201d he said. \u201cHopefully someday I can make it over there. Like I said, I\u2019ve never been over there, but I\u2019ve heard nothing but great things.\u201d<\/p>\n

The endorsement from one of the greatest players in NBA history comes amid a career-best season for Avdija. The 25-year-old is averaging 25.2 points, 7.2 rebounds and 6.2 assists per game for Portland, firmly establishing himself as one of the Western Conference\u2019s top performers.<\/p>\n

After narrowly missing a starting spot in fan voting \u2014 finishing seventh among Western Conference players \u2014 Avdija was selected by the conference\u2019s coaches as one of seven reserves, sealing his place in Sunday night\u2019s showcase.<\/p>\n

Speaking during All-Star media day in Los Angeles, Avdija described the moment as the fulfillment of years of work.<\/p>\n

\u201cDreams come true,\u201d he said. \u201cYou work hard and sacrifice. Be good and be patient, and good things will happen.\u201d<\/p>\n

Seeing his All-Star jersey for the first time \u2014 adorned with the flag of Israel \u2014 was especially meaningful.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m happy to represent the country on the biggest stage,\u201d he said. \u201cYou walk into the room and see the jersey with your name and the flag \u2014 it\u2019s very emotional, especially for a player who went through a long journey to get to this moment.\u201d<\/p>\n

The All-Star Game will follow the league\u2019s new tournament-style format, with three teams competing in short games before a final. Avdija will play for the international team alongside stars such as Nikola Joki\u0107 and Luka Don\u010di\u0107.<\/p>\n

Israeli fans have traveled to Los Angeles for the occasion, calling Avdija \u201ca source of pride\u201d and a trailblazer for the next generation.<\/p>\n

Regardless of Sunday night\u2019s result, Avdija\u2019s presence alone marks a milestone \u2014 for his career and for basketball in Israel.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The NBA All-Star Game is set to tip off at midnight Israel time between Sunday and Monday, and…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":293301,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[85,46,43],"class_list":{"0":"post-293300","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-israel","8":"tag-il","9":"tag-israel","10":"tag-news"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/293300","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=293300"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/293300\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/293301"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=293300"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=293300"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=293300"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}