P.J. Washington Could Channel Mavs Legend with Bench Move

P.J. Washington grew up in the DFW area, meaning he's just as aware as the rest of MFFLs about the impact Jason Terry had on the Dallas Mavericks.

Terry, a member of the 2011 NBA Championship team in Dallas, helped the team reach such heights for his off-the-bench specialty that was relentless in helping the team succeed on the floor.

In fact, had Terry not scored his 27 points in the championship-sealing Game 6 in 2011, who knows how the rest of the Mavs' story would play out, then or now.

Washington has spoken about how Terry's No. 31 Mavericks jersey was one of the first jerseys he owned as a child.

And here soon, he could adopt Terry's role of what made him into a Mavs legend.

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"For me, my biggest thing is winning. Whether I’m starting or not, I just want to win," Washington said about whether he'd take on a bench role for Dallas under new head coach Dusty May.

Washington was acquired by the Mavs midway through the 2023-24 season, which ended with a trip to the NBA Finals. It was Washington's first-career playoff experience beyond the play-in tournament after beginning his career with the Charlotte Hornets.

"I’ve been on so many losing teams. I’ve been to the playoffs one time in my career," he said this week at training camp. "So for me, I just want to turn that around and get to the playoffs and just win. I think that’s my biggest thing. So I feel like if I’m starting or not, I can make an impact on the floor whenever I’m out there."

Last season, Washington took a step back from the previous year, but remained a vital part of the roster at various times for his defensive versatility, motor, leadership and shot-making. That 3-point presence, however, dipped by six percentage points from the 2024-25 season, which was tumultuous on several fronts for the Mavs organization.

But like Terry, Mavs history isn't fully written without Washington's heroics throughout the 2024 playoff run.

Washington started in each postseason game for Dallas two seasons ago, and last season he continued that influence, starting all but three of the games he appeared in.

With May's roster including an influx of forwards, Washington's place in the starting lineup this upcoming season is as uncertain as it's ever been.

"I think as coaches, we have a couple different lineups penciled in," May said. "But obviously, as we’ve learned and are learning, … there’s a lot of inconsistency in the lineup over a number of days based on back-to-backs and injuries. In this rotation, what would this look like versus what would this group look like together? So I haven’t thought of it."

Regardless of his role, May is confident in Washington's traits making an impact on the program, just as it was when his trade deadline acquisition sparked Dallas' deepest playoff run since Terry and Dirk Nowitzki led the way over a decade earlier.

"P.J., we’ve gotten a little bit of everything out of P.J. He’s someone that I think can check a lot of boxes," May said. "If you want to play a small lineup, you can play the five. He can play the three for the bigger lineup. But we need his physicality. We need his basketball instincts. He’s a quick thinker. Defensively, he knows what to do at all times. We’ve gotta get him to use his voice a little bit more to share his knowledge with the group, and he’s gonna help us."