Video: P.J. Washington, Gafford Shade Hornets, Wizards After Mavs' WCF Win vs. Wolves | News, Scores, Highlights, Stats, and Rumors

The biggest winners of the 2023-24 NBA season might be P.J. Washington and Daniel Gafford, who are headed to the NBA Finals with the Dallas Mavericks after being acquired at midseason.

Following the Mavs' 124-103 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves in Game 5 on Thursday, Washington went on Instagram Live and posted a video from the locker room with Gafford to shade their previous clubs while declaring they "went from the bottom to the top."

The Athletic @TheAthletic

P.J. Washington started the season on the Hornets.<br>Daniel Gafford started the season on the Wizards.<br><br>Now, they're heading to the NBA Finals on the Mavericks.<br><br>"We went from the bottom to the top!"<br><br>🎥 <a href="">@PJWashington</a> <a href="">

It's not an overstatement to say that Gafford and Washington went from two of the worst situations in the NBA to having the opportunity to play for a championship basically overnight.

Washington and Gafford were acquired by Dallas in separate deals ahead of the Feb. 8 trade deadline. Washington was in the midst of his fifth season with the Charlotte Hornets. Gafford was in his fourth season playing for the Washington Wizards.

The Wizards finished this season with the second-worst record in the league (15-67). The Hornets were slightly better at 21-61, but neither team was within shouting distance of a play-in berth, let alone competing for a championship.

Even though the initial takes on the trades weren't exactly overwhelmingly positive for the Mavericks, they are getting the last laugh on everyone.

Following the additions of Washington and Gafford to their rotation, the Mavericks had a top-10 unit by defensive rating, defensive rebounding percentage, opponents field-goal percentage and opponents field-goal percentage at the rim.

Prior to the trade deadline, Dallas was a bottom-10 defense in all of those categories. The Mavs closed the regular season with a 21-9 record over their last 30 games after both players made their debut.

Dallas is 12-5 in this postseason and will play in the NBA Finals for the first time since the 2010-11 season.