P.J. Washington's alarming slump raises tough questions about his Mavericks future

The Indiana Pacers offense proved to be too much for the Dallas Mavericks to stop on Monday night.

In a 134-127 loss, the Mavericks did as much as they could to get the ball in the bucket, and ended up having a good offensive game as they scored 127 points, but they couldn't get the stops necessary to claw out a win.

The Mavs got plenty of opportunities, but they could not capitalize on their decent looks when they needed a bucket the most down the stretch.

Those missed opportunities came from everywhere and from nearly everyone, but one specific Maverick has been struggling this season thus far on the offensive end.

Washington's shooting struggles raise concern about his future in Dallas

The hustle and heart of Washington is undeniable. His defense and rebounding are needed every night and he has been the best defender on the team this season. However, the shooting slump has stuck by his side for most of this season, unfortunately. Washington is shooting 22.6 percent from downtown on 4.4 attempts per game, and he seemingly can't get anything to fall.

With an unexpected injury to Dereck Lively II before playing Indiana, Washington's hustle and shooting were needed badly. Maxi Kleber is still dealing with a hamstring injury, but Jason Kidd said recently that Kleber is trending in the right direction when it comes to a potential return despite being extremely limited in practice. Washington was expected by many fans to provide for his team offensively this season after an amazing playoff run, but that hasn't consistently been the case this season.

Washington had eight points against Indiana. He shot 0-5 from 3-point territory, including an air ball on a 3-point attempt in the fourth quarter when Dallas needed a bucket badly. Overall, Washington shot 3-11 from the field. The bright spot was Washington's rebounding abilities, respectively.

When Washington is out-hustling his man on defense or getting rebounds, his strength is unmatched against opponents. Mavs fans expect hustle from him. His 3-point ability doesn't have to be splendid, but he just can't be shooting 0-5 from deep every night and has to take advantage of the open looks that Luka Doncic creates for him. When sharing the floor with Doncic, Kyrie Irving, and Klay Thompson, Washington is going to be getting some of the most open looks on the team.

Now it's up to him to be able to let it fly with confidence and be the shooter that we all know he can be once he's in a good rhythm. Confidence is huge for shooters, and Washington seems to be hesitant to shoot some open threes this season. That was never the case in the playoffs, and being willing to shoot open shots is important.

He's also losing the ball on dribble drives and hasn't been able to be as trusted of a ball handler as he needs to be. If these types of performances are normal, the Mavericks organization might need to think to get someone of his similar hustle who can make perimeter shots down the road considering how important shooting is for teams led by Doncic.

Washington has already laid the groundwork to become a fan favorite. His energy is there. His hustle is there, but making shots is a must for his team to succeed.

Naji Marshall had his coming out party against Indiana, finishing with 20 points in 34 minutes. Marshall using his body to take the ball in the paint is a strength that the Mavs need to use with Washington more often. If Washington continues to struggle shooting the ball, Marshall could be someone who gets more minutes. Washington has shown flashes of being a good attacker this season and his floater looks good, and we need to see more of that from him as we move forward.

Marshall's performance should be a wake-up call for Washington to get his shooting back on track. Everybody has cold spells, but this has lasted since the beginning of the season for Washington. His shooting is crucial to the Mavs winning games, and if he can't turn into a good 3-point shooter, the Mavs will be in a tough spot when it comes to his future with the team. Dallas' 3-point shooting has been way down this season, and they can't expect to be elite contenders while struggling this badly from three.

It's only a matter of time until Washington breaks out, and it could just take some time for him to get his jumper rolling. We saw it take some time for Washington's 3-point jumper to start falling after the Mavs traded for him last year, and hopefully, he can snap out of this shooting slump soon and turn into a deadly fourth option in the starting unit.