P.J. Washington is “likely” to sign an extension with the Dallas Mavericks this week, our own Marc Stein reported over the weekend. Washington, who’s eligible for an extension worth about $90 million over the next four seasons, is entering the final year of his contract.
Right now, Washington is likeliest to come off the bench for the Mavericks next season, but he was an every game starter on the team’s run to the 2024 Finals and has clearly proven his versatility as a do-it-all four. If Dallas had sought to trade Washington this summer, there would have been a market for the 6’7 forward, who turned 27 over the weekend. However, even if Washington’s role is slightly reduced from what it recently was, the extension would make Washington ineligible to be traded next season — because the six-month moratorium on dealing him would expire after next season’s deadline — if his new agreement has him earning more than $16.9 million in its first year. To be immediately tradable after signing an extension under the league’s CBA, players cannot receive a raise over 20 percent of what they were earning in the final deal of the prior contract.
The Mavericks recently encountered this extension rule with Daniel Gafford, who the team re-signed to a deal in June that did fall beneath that 20 percent marker, meaning he could have immediately been traded this summer. However, Dallas has opted to keep its entire roster in place, save for the incoming Cooper Flagg and a likely one-year partnership with D’Angelo Russell, who arrives to deputize for Kyrie Irving while he continues recovering from a torn ACL. Dallas, perhaps still scarred by last season’s nightmarish spate of injuries, now has at least 12 players who should rightly expect rotation minutes to start next season. Still, teams typically have a rotation player or three absent throughout any given season. Notably, both Anthony Davis and Dereck Lively II had offseason surgeries, although there has yet to be any indication they won’t be available for opening night.
Those two would start ahead of Washington, as would Flagg. Dallas could begin games with Washington playing alongside those three, but it’s likelier Klay Thompson would retain his starting role from last season given the team’s shooting deficiencies throughout the roster. Still, Jason Kidd has hinted himself that Flagg could play in a role that basically asks him for the same responsibilities as a guard. We know Flagg will frequently be asked to create shots for himself and others with the ball in his hands.
If Washington re-signs with the Mavericks, it’s still likeliest Dallas would need to eventually determine a consolidation trade for this roster as the team’s Flagg-led future grows nearer. In a year from now, it could be Washington who ends up available. But Washington, one of the prototypical forwards that we’ve seen on most championship teams over the past few years, could just as easily be someone we see Dallas hang onto. Regardless, getting an extension done with him, if it happens, is good business.
