The Israeli Basketball Association (IBBA) announced Tuesday that NBA star Deni Avdija will not play with the national team during the pre-qualifying tournament for the 2024 Paris Olympic Games.
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"Despite the previous announcement by the NBA, the Washington Wizards decided that due to Avdija's hip injury he will not be able to join the national team games this summer," the IBBA stated.
In recent weeks, after numerous discussions between the national team and Avdija and his representatives, including the Wizard's representatives, Avdija made it clear that he wanted to play on the national team in the upcoming tournament and had already set a date to arrive for training.
However, last week it became apparent that the player is suffering from an injury that greatly concerned his team, which sent an emergency physician to Israel.
After several consultations and the desire that Avdija enter the new NBA season without sustaining an injury or aggravating the current one by playing in the upcoming games, the parties, in conjunction with the Israeli national team, have reached an agreement that he will not take part in the upcoming tournament.
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The Washington Wizards want Deni Avdija to enter the next NBA season injury-free
(Photo: AP/Nick Wass)
The pre-qualifying tournament for the 2024 Paris Olympics will be held in Tallinn, Estonia, where the national team will face Macedonia, the Czech Republic and Estonia. The top two teams from this group will advance to the semifinals, competing against the parallel group, which includes Poland, Bosnia, Portugal and Bulgaria. The winner of the tournament will qualify for the Olympic qualifying tournament, scheduled for the summer of 2024.