Deni Avdija Addresses Criticism Over National Team Absence

Deni Avdija has heard the noise. This time, he chose to answer it.

Under fire in Israel for missing recent World Cup qualifying windows, the Portland Trail Blazers forward released a detailed statement explaining why he stayed away from the national team and why, in his eyes, that absence says nothing about his loyalty.

“I came when I wasn’t at 100%”

Avdija opened by reminding fans where, and how often, he has stood before.

“I usually don't feel the need to explain myself, but this time it is important to me to say a few words,” he wrote, before drawing a clear line through his years with the national side.

Anyone who has followed his international career knows the pattern: he showed up hurt, he showed up tired, he showed up when it made little sense for his NBA future. He pointed out that he joined Israel camps while in pain, while short of full fitness, and during summers when rest would have been the smarter move for his personal trajectory.

He even stressed the risk in a contract year, when a single injury can reshape a career. He still came. No excuses, no strategic withdrawals. “As long as I could wear the Israeli jersey and step onto the court, I was there,” he wrote.

That history formed the backdrop to the current storm.

A back injury and a firm veto

This summer, the equation changed.

Avdija revealed he has been dealing with what he called a “complex” back injury, the kind of problem that, as he put it, only those who have lived through it truly understand. The issue first surfaced publicly in July, when team manager Motti Daniel noted that Avdija was struggling with his back and that Portland had already blocked his participation.

The Israeli Basketball Association confirmed before the August window that Portland had not approved his release. When the roster came out, his name was missing, and the backlash began.

Avdija made it clear the call was not his alone.

“This time I wanted to be there just as much,” he wrote. But Portland, he said, “was not willing to take a risk” with his health. Under that restriction, he simply “had no option” to join the national team and play.

NBA franchises routinely protect their assets, especially when it comes to back issues, and Portland drew a hard line. For Avdija, that meant watching from afar as Israel fought through qualifiers without one of its central pieces.

Facing the criticism head-on

The absence triggered a wave of frustration back home. Avdija did not dodge that.

“I understand disappointment. I understand criticism,” he admitted. When you represent a country, pressure comes with the territory. Expectations are not a surprise to him; they are part of the job.

But he refused to accept one specific accusation.

“One thing I am not willing to let anyone question: My commitment to the national team and my country.” He insisted he does not need to shout about how much he cares, arguing his track record already speaks loudly enough. Years of showing up in difficult circumstances, he believes, are the real proof.

Eyes on a return

Avdija closed with a simple wish: to get healthy, get back on court and pull on the Israel jersey again.

“There is nothing I want more than to be healthy, return to the court, and wear the Israeli jersey again,” he wrote, adding that even when he cannot play, “my heart is there.”

For now, the back dictates the pace. Portland controls the medical decisions. The national team continues without him.

The next time Israel calls, will his body – and his NBA club – let him answer in the way he always has?