The Mavericks clinched no worse than 10th place in the Western Conference this season with their 109-95 win over Atlanta on Thursday.
It wasn’t a milestone moment in Mavericks’ history. They have loftier goals than merely the play-in tournament for teams finishing seventh through 10th in the West.
But it was a significant development in the professional career of P.J. Washington.
The 6-7 forward spent his first four-plus seasons with the Charlotte Hornets and never once played beyond Game No. 82 in any of those seasons.
Now, he’s headed to the postseason, probably without having to experience the play-in tournament given that the way the Mavericks have been playing.
“It feels great. I can’t wait,” Washington said after the victory over the Hawks pushed them to 46-30, a game ahead in the loss column of Phoenix and New Orleans, who are tied for sixth in the West. “I’ve been talking about it the whole time since I’ve been here. I’m just excited to get a taste of postseason play. I just can’t wait for it.”
It’ll be here soon enough.
But the Mavericks have work to do before then and they showed against the Hawks that they are quite capable of winning without their A games.\
Washington was a big reason why. He had 19 points and eight rebounds and played his usual sticky defense.
“We’ve always trusted (him) and you can see that on both ends,” coach Jason Kidd said. “We’ve always graded him on the defensive end. Being able to knock down the three helped us. We would love for him to do that every night. But we don’t judge him on making threes. We love what he does for us on the defensive end.”
And Washington has adjusted quite well to the different culture with the Mavericks. He never really has experienced the stakes rising and the pressure building late in a winning season.
“No disrespect to the Charlotte Hornets, but he’s on a better team where the shots matter,” Kyrie Irving said. “And we need him to make those shots. And we have the confidence in him.”
Washington’s three-ball is important, no doubt. But he knows he’s on the floor starting because of defense. And his teamwork on that end of the floor with Derrick Jones Jr. and Daniel Gafford has made the Mavericks more complete.
Everybody knows Irving and Luka Dončić will do the heavy lifting offensively. But on defense, it has to be a group effort. And it has been as the Mavericks have limited nine consecutive opponents to 107 points or fewer.
“I think we did good on that (defensive) end,” Washington said of the Mavericks’ effort against Atlanta. “It shows our toughness. Everybody’s locked in and ready to play. I feel like we’re in a good place. Everybody’s buying in. everybody’s playing together and everybody’s happy for each other. It’s great to be on a team like this. And I’m just excited.”
Here’s our other takeaways from the win over Atlanta:
How do you like me now? A year ago, everybody in the NBA was questioning that trade that brought Irving to Dallas. Now? It’s a different story. “I got a meme in my photos, and I think ESPN gave us a grade (of) D for the trade of me coming here,” Irving said. “Us clinching a (spot) and putting ourselves in great position definitely answers some of those questions that were asked last season by all of the naysayers.” It’s all about redemption, he said.
No. 3: The Mavericks probably don’t have a No. 3 offensive option behind Luka and Kyrie. And that’s OK. It can change from game to game. On Thursday, it was Washington. “Anyone can be a third option,” Kidd said. “We know we got the one and two. And it’s open for anyone to step into that third seat. Our two stars are going to create open looks.”
Home sweet home: After 10 days on the road, the Mavericks were happy to crawl into their own beds after a game for the first time in a long time. “Tonight, we were a little tired on the first game back from a long road trip,” Kidd said. “But I thought the chemistry and trust was shown again. It wasn’t pretty but we did what we had to do and that was to get the win.” The Mavericks now have the exact same record at home as on the road, 23-15.
Western Conference update
Team (seed) Record Games left (H-R)
Minnesota (1) 53-23……….3-3
Denver (2) 53-24……….2-3
Oklahoma City (3) 52-24………4-2
LA Clippers (4) 48-28……….5-1
Dallas (5) 46-30……….3-3
Phoenix (6) 45-31..…….3-3
——————–
New Orleans (7) 45-31……….2-4
Sacramento (8) 44-32……….3-3
LA Lakers (9) 44-33……….3-2
Golden State (10) 42-34…….…3-3
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Houston (11) 38-38………3-3
X: @ESefko
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