Team reporter: Washington is the leader of the Mavericks, and he should never be traded out!

ClutchPoints' Dallas Mavericks reporter Joey Mistretta updated on his social media, and he also talked about the many hidden dangers that the team may bring after trading forward PJ Washington.

Mistretta wrote: If the Mavericks traded PJ, it would probably destroy the Mavericks' team culture. You should know that he took the initiative to stand up last season and carried the banner of the team leader, which also made him highly respected by everyone in the team. There have been various trading rumors everywhere recently, but if I were in the team's management position, I would definitely find a way to keep Washington and let him finish the 25-26 season. Given that Irving will miss the game in the early stages of the season, and Anthony Davis has just arrived at the team, so his time to practice with his teammates is relatively limited. In this case, PJ should become the adhesive in the team's lineup some time after the start of next season, and he has the ability to gather everyone together. If the team really traded him, then when the new season starts, who will lead such a brand new team without tacit understanding will become a big problem.

In the NBA regular season this season, Washington played 57 games in 82 games, averaging 32.2 minutes per game, averaging 14.7 points, 7.8 rebounds, 2.3 assists, 1.1 steals and 1.1 blocks, and 2.1 turnovers and 2.3 fouls. He shot 45.3%, three-point shooting percentage 38.1%, and free throw shooting percentage 72.2%. In the first round of the playoffs, the team beat the Sacramento Kings, Washington made 5 of 15 shots, 1 of 6 from the three-point line, and 6 of 6 free throws, scoring 17 points, 9 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 steals, and 2 turnovers and 2 fouls, with a plus-negative value of +28. In the second round of the playoffs, the team lost to the Memphis Grizzlies, Washington made 0 of 5 shots and 0 of 3 from outside the three-point line during the second round of the playoffs, failed to score 1 point in the game, contributed only 6 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals, and had 4 turnovers and 5 fouls, with a plus-negative value of -12.

Washington's ability and his value to the team are obvious to all, but the problem is that the Mavericks hold the No. 1 pick in the next NBA Draft, and it is almost a foregone conclusion that they choose Cooper Flagg, a freshman from Duke University. After Flag arrived at the team, he would occupy the starting small forward position, while Davis would occupy the starting power forward position. This means that Washington's playing time next season and his importance in the team will drop significantly. In this case, it seems unrealistic to not send Washington away.