{"id":849167,"date":"2026-10-02T13:00:15","date_gmt":"2026-10-02T13:00:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/849167\/"},"modified":"2026-10-02T13:00:15","modified_gmt":"2026-10-02T13:00:15","slug":"p-j-washington-reveals-what-matters-more-than-starting-in-dallas","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/849167\/","title":{"rendered":"P.J. Washington Reveals What Matters More Than Starting In Dallas"},"content":{"rendered":"

Four practices into camp, May said he cannot see Dallas settling on a starting five<\/a> anytime soon. On Thursday, May said he has not studied who started for the Mavericks last season or the season before.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think as coaches, we have a couple different lineups penciled in,\u201d May said. \u201cBut obviously, as we\u2019ve learned and are learning, \u2026 there\u2019s 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\u2019t thought of it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI haven\u2019t really studied who has and hasn\u2019t started last year or the year before, because to me that\u2019s so irrelevant anyway. Personally, if I could play five more minutes and not hear my name called, I\u2019d rather play those five extra minutes,\u201d May continued. \u201cOr if I could finish a game versus have my name called and start a lineup, I\u2019d rather finish the game as well. So hopefully we have the mindset that whatever the team needs. But P.J. is certainly in the mix for a starting spot, mostly because he can play multiple positions.\u201d<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tDusty May On P.J. Washington\u2019s Voice And Versatility<\/p>\n

May said Sunday that Washington\u2019s voice is needed. At media day<\/a>, Washington said May wants him to be more of a leader and to lead with his voice. Washington can play the three in a bigger lineup and the five in a small one, according to May.<\/p>\n

\u201cP.J., we\u2019ve gotten a little bit of everything out of P.J. He\u2019s someone that I think can check a lot of boxes,\u201d May explained. \u201cIf you wanna 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\u2019s a quick thinker. Defensively, he knows what to do at all times. We\u2019ve gotta get him to use his voice a little bit more to share his knowledge with the group, and he\u2019s gonna help us.\u201d<\/p>\n

Washington is entering his eighth NBA season. Being vocal off the floor as well as on it is part of the job for him now.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s been good. I mean, for me, I think obviously I\u2019m at the point in my career where I\u2019m a vet now. So my voice means a lot more now,\u201d Washington explained. \u201cSo for me, I think it\u2019s going to be my biggest transition during the year, is making sure I\u2019m \u2026 off the floor and on the floor for the guys, and just being vocal doing it.\u201d<\/p>\n

On Sunday, May listed Washington\u2019s wingspan, toughness, and physicality, along with his ability to punish mismatches inside and outside. Dallas needs as much offensive and defensive versatility as it can get, May said then.<\/p>\n

Some lineups this season will need whoever draws the lesser defender to bring the ball up. Washington is a candidate to do it as a point forward, depending on who is guarding him.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe shot the ball well in live play,\u201d May said. \u201cHe\u2019s making good decisions on and off the ball. And then there\u2019s gonna be lineups with whoever has the lesser defenders that have to bring it up. And P.J. certainly in that mix.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cA guy that can play the point forward, and it\u2019s all dependent on who\u2019s guarding him and the matchups in that game,\u201d May added. \u201cSo, playing as many teams as we play, and as big as the league is, you\u2019re gonna see so many different things. And so you gotta have that optionality.\u201d<\/p>\n

Basketball Reference lists Washington as a power forward and center. In 2021-22, his third season in Charlotte, he was listed at center and made 28 starts in 65 games. Washington wants to be good at everything.<\/p>\n

\u201cVersatility. For me, being able to guard perimeter guys, being able to guard big guys. And then offensively, being able to play in a pick-and-roll as a screener, as a ball handler, and just playing different mismatches,\u201d Washington said. \u201cSo, for me, my biggest thing is I want to be good at everything. So, I feel like in my workouts I should try to do, whether that\u2019s finishing, shooting, playmaking.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201c\u2026 So, for me, it\u2019s just trying to work on each and every aspect of my game so I can be on the floor. If the bigs are hurt, I can play five,\u201d Washington continued. \u201cWhen we\u2019re short on guards, I can bring it up. So for me, just being versatile.\u201d<\/p>\n

May said Washington is a good passer.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s done things every day that impress [me]. Like I said, his basketball IQ, he\u2019s a winning player,\u201d May said. \u201cI mean, he fights for his teammates, he has their backs. He\u2019s a good passer. Like I said, he\u2019s a quick thinker. So yeah, we\u2019re excited about P.J. Like I said, he checks a lot of boxes as well.\u201d<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tP.J. Washington On His Health And His 3-Point Shot<\/p>\n

Washington was born in Louisville, Kentucky, and played two seasons at Kentucky. Charlotte took him 12th overall in the 2019 NBA Draft, and he made the All-Rookie team in 2019-20. Over 446 career games, he has averaged 13.3 points, 6.0 rebounds, and 2.2 assists.<\/p>\n

Over the last two seasons, Washington has missed 51 games. He played 57 in 2024-25 and 56 last season, when he missed time late in the year with an illness and left elbow soreness. At media day, Washington said the weight room was the biggest thing he wanted to focus on this summer.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor me, just my biggest emphasis is making sure I\u2019m doing everything, making sure my body\u2019s right each and every day, make sure I come in here at 100% health, and just doing all the little things,\u201d Washington said. \u201cI think for me, the weight room has been very beneficial for me. Try to do something each and every day, and I think that\u2019ll take me a long way.\u201d<\/p>\n

In 2024-25, Washington averaged 14.7 points, 7.8 rebounds, and 2.3 assists and shot 38.1% from three on 91-of-239. Last season, he averaged 14.2 points, 7.0 rebounds, and 1.8 assists in 56 games, with 53 starts. His 3-point shooting fell to 32.5% on 76-of-234, below his career mark of 35.4%.<\/p>\n

His shot was one of three things Washington worked on beyond his health.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy shot mechanics, being able to playmake a little better, and just trying to get a good rhythm in the offense and finding my niche, I would say,\u201d Washington said.<\/p>\n

On Thursday, Washington worked on his pull-up. His biggest thing with the shot is staying upright and getting the ball out the same way every time.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think it\u2019s great for me and great for the team. If I can hit the three-ball at a consistent rate, it opens the floor for a lot of us,\u201d Washington said. \u201cThe team\u2019s got to guard me out there. Obviously, I\u2019m going to have more driving lanes and more ways to create for others. For me, my biggest thing is just trying to stay upright and get the ball out the same way every single time.\u201d<\/p>\n

Washington signed a four-year, $90 million extension with Dallas in September 2025. It begins this season and runs through 2029-30.<\/p>\n

Cooper Flagg<\/a> won Rookie of the Year last season after averaging 21.0 points, 6.7 rebounds, and 4.5 assists in 70 games. May said Sunday that he would like to have 15 players with Washington\u2019s size, versatility, length, skill, toughness, and IQ when discussing the forward\u2019s fit with Flagg. The Mavericks are playing off Flagg in camp, according to Washington.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s been great. I think for him, he\u2019s been doing a great job of just being himself, and we\u2019re kind of playing off of him,\u201d Washington said. \u201cSo he\u2019s able to make plays. He\u2019s able to take his shots. He\u2019s able to be versatile on both ends of the floor, and we\u2019re kind of just piggybacking, or just helping him find ways to be himself.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kyrie Irving<\/a> returned without restrictions<\/a> 18 months after tearing the ACL in his left knee. Washington and Irving played together for a season and a half before Irving\u2019s injury in March 2025. Irving makes it easier for everybody else, Washington said.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s been great. I love playing with Kyrie. He brings so much attention,\u201d Washington said. \u201cHe makes it so much easier for everybody else. His gravity is one of a kind, and I can\u2019t wait for him to be on the floor with everybody and obviously everybody to be healthy. That\u2019s my biggest thing, and I\u2019m just ready to have some fun.\u201d<\/p>\n

Morez Johnson Jr.<\/a>, the ninth overall pick in June, has been limited in camp by lower leg soreness<\/a>. Johnson is in early every day trying to get better, according to Washington.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s a dog. I mean, he\u2019s a bully out there. He\u2019s strong. He knows what we want to do each and every possession. He talks on both ends, and he\u2019s willing to learn,\u201d Washington said. \u201cHe\u2019s in here every day early trying to get better. And, I mean, you love guys like that, especially when they\u2019re young. You know they\u2019re going to have a bright future.\u201d<\/p>\n

Santi Aldama<\/a> and Sergio de Larrea<\/a> play together for Spain. Washington has not learned any new words from them yet.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019ve kind of been stingy. Serge and Santi, they\u2019ve been speaking Spanish just to themselves,\u201d Washington said. \u201cSo I\u2019m going to pick their brain a little bit during the season.\u201d<\/p>\n

Dallas opens the preseason against the Houston Rockets on Oct. 9 at 7 a.m. CT at The Venetian Arena in Macao, and the teams play there again Oct. 11. Washington went to Shanghai and Hangzhou this summer. Playing in front of that crowd will be a blessing, he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI just want to get through the flight, to be honest with you. Obviously, it\u2019s going to be a whole different culture. I\u2019m excited to see and interact with the people out there,\u201d Washington said. \u201cObviously, playing in front of that crowd is going to be a blessing. And for me, just being thankful, just obviously being able to play that game that I love in different parts of the world and interacting with people. So I\u2019m excited to see how they treat us out there, and they\u2019re ready to have a good time.\u201d<\/p>\n

After Macao, Dallas closes the preseason at home against New Orleans on Oct. 14 and Atlanta on Oct. 16. The regular season opens Oct. 21 at Houston, with tip-off at 7:30 p.m. CT.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Four practices into camp, May said he cannot see Dallas settling on a starting five anytime soon. On…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":849168,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3777],"tags":[7,684,473,3878,685,6],"class_list":["post-849167","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-charlotte-hornets","tag-basketball","tag-charlotte","tag-charlotte-hornets","tag-charlottehornets","tag-hornets","tag-nba"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nba\/117371445137092184","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/849167","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=849167"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/849167\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/849168"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=849167"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=849167"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=849167"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}