With Luka Dončić lounging on the bench in street clothes, another member of the Dallas Mavericks had to step up and play
above their standards if they had designs on defeating the Golden State Warriors.
That someone was P.J. Washington.
With 4.5 seconds remaining in Friday’s game, Washington broke a tie and scored the game-winning basket after he took a pass inside the paint from a hard-charging Tim Hardaway Jr. The pulsating 108-106 victory at American Airlines Center was the Mavs’ 13th win in their last 15 games and increased their record to 47-30 heading into Sunday’s 2:30 p.m. contest at home against the Houston Rockets.
In breaking down his game-winning basket, Washington said: “I saw Draymond (Green) had his head towards Tim, and Tim was driving,” Washington said. “I thought he was going to shoot it, so I just tried to go in and get a rebound, and he passed it to me and I just tried to make a play and win the game.”
The Warriors called timeout after Washington’s crucial basket and tried to set something up for Stephen Curry, who was throwing one haymaker after another and keeping Golden State in a game the Mavs led, 98-88, with 5:58 left. However, the Mavs forced the ball out of Curry’s hands and into the hands of Klay Thompson, who missed a wide open three-pointer from the corner as time expired.
Thompson’s miss was a huge sigh of relief for the Mavs in general and Washington in particular. That’s because back on Feb. 27, Washington scored what he thought was the game-winning dunk in Cleveland with 2.9 seconds left, only to see Max Strus drill an improbable 59-footer at the buzzer to lift the Cavaliers to a stunning 121-119 triumph over the Mavs.
“About five people came up to me and all they were talking to me about was Cleveland,” a smiling Washington said. “I’m just glad we got a win tonight and closed this one out.”
The win came while Dončić sat out the game with right knee soreness. The fifth-seeded Mavs, who still trail the No. 4-seeded Los Angeles Clippers in the Western Conference by two games, are now 4-6 in games Dončić didn’t play this season.
Washington certainly did his part in filling the void left by Dončić as he finished with 32 points, five rebounds, five steals and two blocks. In stuffing the stat sheet, Washington also was a very efficient 12-of-18 from the floor, including 5-of-8 from downtown.
“P.J. was great for us,” coach Jason Kidd said. “He stepped up offensively and on the defensively end. We needed someone to not be Luka, but be able to give us some points, and I thought he did a great job of just rhythm catch-and-shoot or putting the ball on the floor.
“And then we played small, so his ability to roll-and-catch and finish was big tonight for us.”
Behind 11 points from Washington – including three consecutive three-pointers – the Mavs broke out to a 29-13 lead with 4:13 remain
ing on the first quarter and appeared as though they were about to run the Warriors clean out of AAC. But the Warriors, undaunted, went on such a furious run that they led, 32-31, after the first quarter following a buzzer-beating three-pointer from Chris Paul.
From there, the game was basically nip-and-tuck with the Warriors leading at the half (54-52) and the Mavs leading after the third quarter (79-76). And with Dončić not playing, Kyrie Irving did most of the ball-handling duties and wound up scoring 26 points and distributing seven assists in 42 minutes.
“Kai has been off the charts,” Kidd said. “He’s one of our leaders. On and off the floor he’s been incredible. He’s delivered in the clutch.
“He’s played off the ball, he’s played on the ball, he’s competing on the defensive end. And so as a leader that’s what you need is examples, and that’s what he’s doing for us right now.”
In addition to Dončić, the Mavs also played without Josh Green (right ankle sprain), Dereck Lively II (right knee sprain) and Maxi Kleber (back spasms). But with everyone seemingly tied to a string, the Mavs displayed enough resiliency to exact revenge on the Warriors after they lost in San Francisco, 104-100, this past Tuesday.
It was a game where center Daniel Gafford was a proverbial workhorse in holding down the middle for the Mavs. He finished with 10 points, 15 rebounds, a career-high tying five assists and three blocks.
Less than two minutes into the fourth quarter, Washington skied high and blocked a high-arching pass from Green, which started a fast break that ended with Irving lobbing a perfect pass to Gafford for a dunk and an 84-76 lead.
Overall, Gafford was mired in a physical tussle all night with Trayce Jackson-Davis, Kevon Looney and Green.
“It was a bit of a battle today, but I expected that just from the guys that we were playing,” Gafford said. “It’s all good.”
It’s also all good, from Gafford’s perspective, that the Mavs could win a game of this magnitude without Dončić.
“It just shows that we have a lot of depth,’ Gafford said. “We got a lot of guys hurt, but at the end of the day guys are taking that step up and just came out and just played.
“No matter what the
situation is or what adversity that we were facing, we found ways to get through that. There are frustrations, there are obstacle, but we got over that as a unit.”
The Mavs got over that as a unit because they created 30 assists on their 40 made baskets, and they also shot 47.6 percent from the field. In addition, the Mavs never trailed the Warriors by no more than four points, meaning they were always in the ballgame.
Curry led the Warriors with 28 points, six rebounds and five assists, Thompson tallied 16 points, and Gary Payton II and Brandin Podziemski scored 14 points apiece. But this game belonged to Washington, who was in attack mode all night and while showcasing his offensive and defensive capabilities.
“Obviously, I haven’t really been making shots as of late, so for me just to see them go in is a great confidence booster,” Washington said. “Credit to all my coaches being in there with me every day and getting the work in. I’m just excited that we got a W tonight.
“I tried to pick and chose my spots and just tried to attack early and often and put pressure on them. It feels good. I can’t wait to go home and get some rest.”
X: @DwainPrice
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