5 Winners, 5 losers from the Dallas Mavericks following trade deadline

2. Winner: P.J. Washington

Over his first four and a half seasons in the NBA, P.J. Washington had never played in the NBA Playoffs. Washington was playing for the Charlotte Hornets, and they are typically a team that is at the bottom of the Eastern Conference.

At this year's trade deadline, Washington was traded to the Dallas Mavericks and this was a move that he was thrilled about. Washington grew up in Dallas, and he has shown a high level of excitement ever since arriving in Dallas.

Moving from a team that is in the draft lottery every year to a team that is a contender makes Washington a huge winner from this trade deadline, and he has already become Dallas' best defender and someone they can count on to shut down wings around the NBA.

So far for Dallas, Morris is averaging 8.7 points, 5.3 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 0.3 steals, and 0.3 blocks per game. His offensive numbers have been way down, but he is playing some of the best defense that Mavs fans have ever seen on the perimeter. He has quick enough feet to defend on the perimeter and enough strength to battle down low.

Washington is a key piece for Dallas and will be someone for the team to build around for the next couple of seasons.