Sixth-year wing P.J. Washington and the Dallas Mavericks have agreed to a four-year, $90 million extension, spelling bad news for a Golden State Warriors franchise team that was urged to replace Jonathan Kuminga with him.
ESPN’s Shams Charania reported that Washington’s new deal will keep with the Mavericks through the 2029-30 season.
As per the CBA, the Warriors won’t be eligible to trade for Washington for at least the next six months, ruling him out as a potential trade target for Kuminga.
With Kuminga widely expected to sign his one-year qualifying offer worth $7.9 million, the Warriors would have little to no leverage in any trades, as the Congolese forward will have the right to veto any transactions leading to his free agency in 2026.
Warriors Urged to Target Washington
Blue Man Hoop’s G.C. Bellchamber made a case for the Warriors to replace Kuminga with Washington, citing the latter’s ability to play defense and knock down threes.
“While it is highly unlikely that the Mavericks would have any interest in Kuminga, the Warriors are also almost certainly planning on moving on from Kuminga sometime within the next year,” he wrote.
“Therefore, if they are eventually able to offload Kuminga’s salary to an interested team, they could then set their sights on Washington as the ideal addition in their frontcourt. Although the fit with Jimmy Butler and Draymond Green would be complicated, Washington has shown a willingness to fit his game to whatever role is needed for a contending team, and bringing his dynamic skill-set into Golden State could propel them towards immediate title contention.”
The writer further argued that Washington may get lost in the shuffle on a Mavericks team that already includes Cooper Flagg, Anthony Davis, Dereck Lively II, Klay Thompson, Max Christie, Caleb Martin and Naji Marshall.
Washington to Come off the Bench?
While Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd has yet to name his starting unit, it is widely believed that the team will begin the 2025-26 season with a backcourt of D’Angelo Russell and Klay Thompson, to go with Flagg, Davis and Lively. As such, Washington could be coming off the bench to start the season, which could lead to some friction.
Thompson, though, seems to be open to any role needed of him.
“I think we personally have the best front court in the NBA when healthy,” he told the “Showtime” podcast, via Yahoo Sports. .
“We have so much depth in the front court between P.J., Coop, Gaff and AD. Then, get in a guy like DLo, having that guard depth, I’m just really excited,”
If Washington gets lost in the shuffle in the 2025-26 season, the Warriors could seize their opportunity and swoop in, potentially making an offer for the versatile wing. Washington, who played a pivotal role in helping the Mavericks reach the 2024 NBA Finals, could be a seamless fit on a Warriors team that could use a 3-and-D wing.
The Warriors have nearly $177 million committed in salaries for the 2026-27 season, and may need to trade either Buddy Hield and/or Moses Moody to pursue Washington.
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