P.J. Washington boldly vowed to obliterate Mavericks' biggest issue—and delivered

As the Dallas Mavericks beat the Utah Jazz on Saturday night by a score of 106-94, the Mavericks improved their record to 12-8 on the season.

After losing four consecutive games earlier in November, it seems like this team has finally started to grow chemistry with each other.

In the Mavericks' last eight games, they have won seven and are looking like one of the hottest teams in the NBA, even without their stars, Luka Doncic and Klay Thompson.

Before the 2023-24 All-Star break last season, the Mavericks were in the bottom ten of the NBA when it came to most team rebounds per game (42.0). Post All-Star break though, they became a top ten team in the league for team rebounds per game, averaging 44.2 after their trades for P.J. Washington and Daniel Gafford.

P.J. Washington vowed to fix Mavs' rebounding-and succeeded

This season, the Mavericks are once again inside the top ten, averaging 45.6 rebounds per game. But it wasn't always like that. The Mavs struggled tremendously on the glass in November without P.J. Washington, and Doncic even mentioned that their defensive rebounding was one of the biggest reasons that they were dropping these close games.

Typically the average fan would think either Doncic, Dereck Lively II, or even Gafford would be the player averaging the most boards per game for the Mavericks. It turns out that it's Washington leading the team.

Washington is currently averaging 8.9 rebounds per game and is also top five in the NBA for averaging the most amount of rebounds for non-centers.

He missed five games in early November with a knee sprain, and ever since he returned, Dallas has been much better on the glass. He knew that the rebounding was a problem while he was out, and he has helped address this issue in a massive way.

"When I was out, obviously I think the rebounding was a big issue," Washington said after Dallas' win over the New York Knicks on Wednesday. "When I got back, I obviously wanted to take care of that."

Washington was locked in on improving the team's rebounding after returning to the lineup, and that's exactly what he has done.

Just two weeks ago, Washington recorded his career-high in rebounds in a single game (17) against the Oklahoma City Thunder. Washington once again proved that he owns the Thunder in that game, and he has played great since then.

Washington has recorded five consecutive double-doubles and is averaging 17.8 points, 10.6 rebounds, 3.2 assists, 1.6 steals, and 1.2 blocks per game in that span. He's averaging a career-high this season in rebounds and steals per game too.

Washington might just be 6-foot-7, but it's his wingspan, which is a little bit longer than 7-foot-2, that allows him to snatch so many rebounds and cause his opponents to create so many turnovers.

With Doncic being out for an extended amount of time with a wrist sprain, Washington has truly stepped up on both ends of the floor and has made positive contributions.

Since Washington got traded to Dallas, the Mavericks have an all-time regular season record of 32-12 when he plays. This season specifically, the Mavericks are 11-4 when he suits up.

If the Mavericks want to keep trending in the right direction and winning basketball games, Washington will have to keep up the great work. They will have a great opportunity to extend their amount of wins this upcoming week as their next three out of four opponents have a below .500 record.