One of the positives that emerged from this injury crisis the Dallas Mavericks have been experiencing this season is the development of
forward P. J. Washington as a playmaker.
With guards Luka Dončić (left calf strain), and Jaden Hardy (right ankle sprain) missing games recently, Washington has found himself more often than not assisting guard Kyrie Irving in a play-making type of role. However, facilitating the offense is something Washington religiously practiced during the offseason in an attempt to expand his game.
“It’s something I’ve been working on, so I’m excited to go out there and do it,” Washington said after Wednesday’s 115-114 loss to Minnesota. “But at the end of the day it doesn’t mean anything without a win. The main thing is winning, and we just got to find a way to do that.”
In taking some of the ball-handling duties from Irving while also taking on a much larger role, Washington has been able to initiate the offense ten-fold.
“I think he’s been aggressive since the season started, and he was aggressive (Wednesday),” coach Jason Kidd said. “I thought he and Kai set the tone for us, and we needed one of those guys to go big, and they both went big (Wednesday). We just needed someone else to chip in.”
Washington is averaging 18.3 points and 9.3 rebounds over the past four games, and has accumulated at least four assists in three of the last nine games. The uptick 
in his game is exponentially needed as the Mavs (23-21) battle through a series of injuries that has seen Dončić miss half of the team’s 44 games.
“I feel like (Washington) was taking a lot of notes from the (NBA) Finals last year and the playoffs and seeing the way that some of the best teams in the league are guarding him and guarded us as a group,” Irving said. “When he’s making plays in the paint like that and he’s able to pass out or get easy baskets, it makes a huge different for us. The ball’s in his hands a lot more and you can see me and him kind of developing that – I don’t want to say a one-two punch.
“But we’re developing that chemistry that we need, especially down the stretch in our games like we have now when the majority of our scoring is going to come in our responsibility. I’m grateful that he’s taking the challenge this year and has been healthy, and been able to carry us through games.”
The offseason additions to his game have made Washington a more well-rounded player who can now do multiple things on the court without any hesitation.
“I feel like I’ve grown a lot,” he said. “I feel like I’m a lot more comfortable handling the ball in space, being able to attack (and) being able to make plays.
“I just feel a lot more comfortable bringing the ball up.”
Here are the three takeaways from the Mavs’ one-point loss to the Timberwolves.
*With so much on his shoulders from an offensive standpoint, Mavs guard Kyrie Irving stepped up again and led all scorers in point production with a game-high 36
points. Irving was 12-of-21 from the field, 4-of-11 from behind the three-point line, 8-of-8 from the charity stripe, and also manufactured nine assists. In addition, Irving became just the 81st player in NBA history to score at least 18,000 points.
*P. J. Washington had a very significant impact on Wednesday’s game. The Mavs’ forward tallied a season-high 30 points in 36 minutes. Washington converted a season-high 12 baskets in 22 attempts, and also grabbed seven rebounds, including a game-high four offensive rebounds. It was the first 30-point game for Washington since he scored 32 points against Golden State last April 5 during a 108-106 victory over the Warriors.
*Between Jaden McDaniels, Anthony Edwards and Mike Conley, that trio did the most damage to the Mavs for Minnesota. McDaniels scored 27 points on 10-of-18 shots, and also contributed eight rebounds, four steals and three blocks. Edwards collected 21 points, five rebounds and seven assists. And Conley added 18 points, five boards, eight assists and two steals.
X: @DwainPrice
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