Portland Reporter Says Avdija Crash Was Downplayed and More Serious Than Known

Portland media revisited Deni Avdija’s interview after the Israeli star said his car accident was more serious than previously understood. Avdija, who recently finished the best season of his career, has become a Portland standout and a first-time All-Star, and he is the first Israeli player to reach the NBA playoffs. He spoke about the injury while preparing for his seventh NBA season and discussing the layoff it caused.

Mike Richman of Locked On Blazers criticized both Portland media and himself for how the accident was covered. “The Portland media, including me, covered it badly. We did a poor job, no local site knew about it. At first it was reported only as a minor car accident. It should have been a bigger story,” he said. Richman added that Avdija was hurt, then played, and later got injured again during a game, while noting that Avdija is not the kind of player who would volunteer, “this is how I got injured.”

According to Richman, this is the first clear explanation of what really happened, and it sounded “more frightening and serious than we thought.” He also questioned the Portland Trail Blazers’ handling of the situation, saying this was the second straight season in which one of the team’s players was involved in a car accident and the club did not say anything publicly. He said it is unclear what Avdija told the medical staff or whether he downplayed the accident.

Richman said anyone who has been in a car crash knows the effects can last a long time, adding that even a minor collision left him with lingering lower-back pain. He said it does not completely change how Avdija’s late-season play should be judged, but if the injury was acute it could ease concerns about workload. He concluded that if Avdija focuses on basketball and avoids frightening off-court incidents, the matter likely will not stay with him once he is fully healthy.