Blazers' Tiago Splitter Reacts to Deni Avdija Injury

The Portland Trail Blazers need to be cautious about Deni Avdija's back injury.

Portland Trail Blazers forward Deni Avdija (8) waves to the crowd before a game against the Washington Wizards at Capital One Arena. | Daniel Kucin Jr.-Imagn Images

Coming off a concerning 54-point loss, the Portland Trail Blazers needed a bounce-back win. Luckily, they stumbled into a matchup against a shorthanded Phoenix Suns team and scraped out a gritty win.

While the Blazers walked out of Phoenix with a 92-77 win, an injury to All-Star forward Deni Avdija put a damper on the victory. Avdija left the game after just one minute due to a back injury. After the game, coach Tiago Splitter commented on what happened with his star forward and how it impacted the Blazers.

"Deni, like I said, he was kind of questionable. He felt good before the game. His back—he felt it again. Losing him is not easy. The team has to figure it out offensively, but I think defensively, everybody stepped up and did an amazing job," Splitter said.

Avdija's tricky back injury

Avdija has been dealing with this back issue for a while, and was even listed as questionable going into the game because of it. Obviously, he did not last long in the matchup before tweaking it, and now it has to be something the team monitors a bit extra moving forward.

Splitter was asked if we could see the Blazers deciding to give Avdija some games off to rest and recover from the back injury, but he did not have a clear answer.

"Well, I'm not a doctor, but I've got to, yeah, probably see what's going on and dive deep there to see what's really happening," Splitter said.

Deni Avdija (low back) won’t return Sunday after heading to the locker room in the first quarter vs. the Suns, the team announced. pic.twitter.com/dv225FJ6da

— Yahoo Sports (@YahooSports) February 23, 2026

Avdija has missed 11 of Portland's last 18 games, counting his one-minute outing in Phoenix, and this back injury is certainly raising concern. The All-Star forward has been incredible this season, averaging 24.4 points, 7.0 rebounds, and 6.6 assists per game, and it is a shame that the Blazers do not get to see him at full strength.

In late January, Avdija confirmed that he does not "feel 100%," and it is simply something that he and the Blazers have to power through.

As it stands, the Blazers are in ninth place in the West with a 28-30 record. Portland will likely secure a spot in the play-in tournament, but to truly have a chance to find a spot in the playoffs, they need Avdija to be healthy. The Blazers are 5.5 games ahead of the 11th-place Memphis Grizzlies, meaning they have a cushion if they need to give Avdija some time off to heal his back injury.