PJ Washington: ‘I just hate losing. Even as a kid I was always like this’
“I I was in a restaurant with my wife when I found out,” says PJ Washington. “We were just happy and screaming.” This is certainly not the typical NBA player’s story from the moment he finds out he’s been traded. But the Dallas Mavericks forward isn’t on the trajectory of the typical NBA player. Five years after being drafted in the first round by longtime basement resident Charlotte Hornets, Washington received a phone call at the trade deadline in February that changed his life: He was on his way home to Texas.
We spoke with Washington ahead of the Mavericks’ opening game against the red-hot Minnesota Timberwolves on Wednesday night in the Western Conference finals, a best-of-seven-games battle for a spot in the NBA’s championship round. Washington, 25, is actually from Dallas and says he “always” went to Mavericks games as a kid and watched current coach Jason Kidd take charge with Dirk Nowitzki. Looking back on those formative years on Tuesday morning, shortly before boarding a plane to Minneapolis, Washington acknowledged that finding himself on a track back to DFW – especially on a team with championship potential – is an immensely fortunate thing. “It’s a full-circle moment,” he told the Guardian. “To be able to come back home and play for the home team. Not many guys get that opportunity.”
What Washington has done with this opportunity is remarkable. The 6-foot-4, 230-pound power forward will fit in seamlessly in Dallas, fitting in effortlessly with the team’s newfound identity as a defensive strength and serving as an ideal supporting cast member for runner-up Luka Dončić in the MVP voting of this season, and born…relevance again All-Star point guard Kyrie Irving. “I was a little nervous at first,” says Washington, who has never dealt with the turmoil that comes with trade. “But when I got here, everyone welcomed me with open arms and encouraged me to be myself every day.” Soon, Washington felt comfortable and was given the opportunity that every young, talented player in the league dreams of: to blossom. “When I came here, my mentality was always to go out and do whatever I had to do to help my team win,” Washington said. “That’s just who I am as a player.” The winning streak for Dallas started almost immediately as they won 31 of 49 games after the deadline to jump to fifth in the West standings.
While Washington has always had something of a reputation, as a McDonald’s All-American and uniquely at the vaunted University of Kentucky, some onlookers worried that four and a half years in a losing environment like Charlotte could spoil his winning habits. But that was never a problem for Washington. “I just have a love and passion for the game. I always wanted to go out and win every game I played.” That didn’t get out of hand, he says. He just got another opportunity in Dallas. “It was easy for me to go out and compete [even under the circumstances in Charlotte]because I just love being able to say I’m right in the NBA, playing against guys like LeBron, the better guys in the league. He is quick to add that he wasn’t alone in his desire to win in Charlotte, that other players on the team had the same talent and hunger, but simply weren’t fortunate enough to be led into a better situation. “I feel like a lot of the younger guys there have the same mentality,” he says. “[Winning] it just didn’t happen.”
That’s not to say it wasn’t a relief for Washington to play consistent games again. He has proven to be one of those special players who are able to reach their ultimate potential as the lights get brighter. He attributes this trait to his competitiveness: “I just hate losing. Even as a child, I was always like that.” – and it shows. He was the Mavericks’ third most important player through two postseason games. He was in fact the team’s second leading scorer in their crucial second round series against the Oklahoma City Thunder, ahead of Irving, capping the series with a pair of game-winning free throws.
When asked what was going through his mind at the time, feet on the line, seconds left in the game, his hometown team’s ticket to the Western Conference finals on the line, Washington said his comfort and preparation gave him the calm he needed gifts that were needed at that moment. . “I just thought about all the work I had put into it [up to that moment] trying to get better, being able to calm myself down, just being able to concentrate. Another important factor? “I knew my teammates would be happy with me no matter what.”
Washington, who is represented by Kevin Bradbury of Lift Sports and in the first season of a three-year, $46.5 million contract, says the Mavericks have “great leaders” and a team full of guys who just want to win. Furthermore, the chemistry is off the charts. “We’re all excited for each other, we all want each other to be happy,” he says. “We are there for each other, both on and off the field.” Therein could lie the lesson for any team hoping to steal its own PJ-in-the-rough on a lottery team’s trade market. Of course, finding someone like Washington, a player with innate passion, talent and fire, is of the utmost importance. But putting him in the right situation is what will ultimately separate the successes from the disappointments in the second-chance department.
Washington says he hasn’t had much time to think about his big turn yet. “Everything happened so quickly, I’m still trying to take it all in,” he says. “But when I look back now, I think I would be proud of myself as a child. Just being able to get to this point in my career, in my life. A lot of people don’t get this opportunity, so just to be able to say I’ve been here, I’m forever grateful.”