“ About five people came up to me just to talk about Cleveland (laughs)literally the same thing happened. » PJ Washington can smile about it today. At the end of February on the Cavs floor, the Mavs power forward thought he would give his team victory with a little shot in the racket in the final moments.
That was without counting on an incredible response to the buzzer from Max Strus from the other end of the field. This night against the Warriors, PJ Washington found himself in a similar situation, with a finish under the circle, to which the Californians will not be able to respond.
Filling the absence of Luka Doncic
This time, victory was at the end for the Mavs who played without their playing master, Luka Doncic. Such an absence called on the other Texans to increase their volume of play. Which the power forward seriously did. This winning shot concluded his best evening since his arrival in Dallas: 32 points (12/18 on shots including 5/8 from distance), 5 rebounds, 5 interceptions, 3 assists and 2 blocks.
“ I didn't know until the end of the game that he had scored 32 points, I went 'Oh my God' “, barely exaggerates Daniel Gaffordvery marked by the defensive investment of his teammate.
Erasing your recent awkwardness
“ He was good on both ends of the pitch, he showed up in attack. And on defense, that's what he's been doing throughout the season, since he arrived with the transfer. We needed someone, without being Luka, who was capable of bringing us points, and I think he did a good job of taking catch and shoots in rhythm », Appreciates Jason Kidd for his part.
PJ Washington hit three such shots in the first quarter to get his evening off to a good start. “ I definitely haven't been good lately, so this was a good confidence boost for me. “, admits the person concerned which ended its month of March with an average of 10.5 points for only 38% success.
“ It was spectacular. You could tell he was going to have a special evening just by seeing how he started the match. That's what we needed, especially when we don't have certain guys in the five and we need that offensive firepower », insists Kyrie Irving, praised by his coach for having let go of the leather, on the final two-handed catch, towards Tim Hardaway Jr. who penetrated and found PJ Washington.
Was it really his best game in Dallas? “ In attack for sure, I could have done a little better in defense. I find that I lost a lot of balls (4). I'm just happy we won. »
| PJ Washington | Percentage | Rebounds | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | MJ | Min | Shots | 3pts | L.F. | Off | Def | Early | Pd | Party | Int | Bp | Ct | Pts |
| 2019-20 | CHA | 58 | 30 | 45.5 | 37.4 | 64.7 | 1.0 | 4.5 | 5.5 | 2.1 | 2.7 | 0.9 | 1.6 | 0.8 | 12.2 |
| 2020-21 | CHA | 64 | 31 | 44.0 | 38.6 | 74.5 | 1.5 | 5.1 | 6.5 | 2.5 | 2.7 | 1.1 | 2.0 | 1.2 | 12.9 |
| 2021-22 | CHA | 65 | 27 | 47.0 | 36.5 | 71.6 | 1.3 | 3.9 | 5.2 | 2.3 | 2.3 | 0.9 | 1.3 | 0.9 | 10.3 |
| 2022-23 | CHA | 73 | 33 | 44.4 | 34.8 | 73.0 | 1.0 | 3.9 | 4.9 | 2.4 | 2.6 | 0.9 | 1.5 | 1.1 | 15.7 |
| 2023-24 * | All Teams | 68 | 30 | 43.4 | 31.9 | 68.9 | 1.2 | 4.4 | 5.5 | 1.9 | 2.4 | 0.9 | 1.3 | 0.8 | 12.8 |
| 2023-24 * | CHA | 44 | 29 | 44.6 | 32.4 | 71.3 | 1.2 | 4.1 | 5.3 | 2.2 | 2.6 | 0.9 | 1.5 | 0.7 | 13.6 |
| 2023-24 * | DAL | 24 | 32 | 41.1 | 30.9 | 63.4 | 1.1 | 4.9 | 6.0 | 1.4 | 2.1 | 1.0 | 0.9 | 0.9 | 11.3 |
| Total | 328 | 30 | 44.7 | 35.5 | 70.6 | 1.2 | 4.3 | 5.5 | 2.2 | 2.6 | 0.9 | 1.5 | 1.0 | 12.9 | |
How to read the stats? MJ = matches played; Min = Minutes; Shots = Successful shots / Attempted shots; 3pts = 3-points / 3-points attempted; LF = free throws made / free throws attempted; Off = offensive rebound; Def=defensive rebound; Tot = Total rebounds; Pd = assists; Fte: Personal fouls; Int = Intercepts; Bp = Lost balls; Ct: Against; Pts = Points.
