Israeli basketball player Deni Avdija led the Portland Trail Blazers on Wednesday night to a tight win over Oklahoma City Thunder, handing the defending NBA champions their first loss of the season.

Avdija rallied Portland in the second half from a 22-point deficit to a narrow 121-119 victory, totaling 26 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists.

The stunning comeback helped the Blazers gain a 5:3 record to Thunder’s 8:1.

The Israeli scored 15 free throws, breaking his earlier record of 14 from January.

Jrue Holiday scored 22 points and Jerami Grant added 20 off the bench for Portland.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander registered 35 points and nine rebounds for Oklahoma City, the last unbeaten NBA team since the opening of this season.

Speaking after the game, Portland’s interim coach Tiago Splitter called Avdija “a driver. He wants to get to the rim, it’s not a secret, so he got a lot of free throws… that’s his forte.”

Avdija was drafted by the Washington Wizards in 2020, and joined the Trail Blazers in 2024. Before moving to the NBA, the power forward, nicknamed “Turbo,” played for Maccabi Tel Aviv for four years.

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