Israel-born Deni Avdija responds to Meyers Leonard's anti-Semitic slur

Deni Avdija responds to Meyers Leonard's anti-Semitic slur originally appeared on NBC Sports Washington

Wizards rookie Deni Avdija is the highest draft pick ever from Israel and has a lot of fans around the world who are of the Jewish faith, so it was likely he would at some point be asked about the recent controversy involving Heat big man Meyers Leonard, who said an anti-Semitic slur last week on a video game livestream.

Avdija was asked after practice on Tuesday and he gave a measured response.

"Listen, I don't really want to get into those kinds of things. But I think Meyers didn't have those kinds of intentions," Avdija said.

"I think he did a mistake, we know that. We don't accept those words. But I know he's a good dude and he didn't mean to do that. Hopefully, he understood the mistake."

Leonard, who is out for the season with a shoulder injury, was suspended for a week and fined for the slur. He has yet to return to the Heat. He apologized on Instagram shortly after the incident was made public.

The Wizards have already played the Heat three times this season and won't face them again, at least during the regular season.