Dallas Mavericks guard Spencer Dinwiddie 'hurt' over perception he was issue in Wizards' locker room

DALLAS — Spencer Dinwiddie, who frequently attributes his phenomenal early fit with the Dallas Mavericks to the team's culture and role definition, admitted Saturday that the perception he was a poor teammate during his brief stint with the Washington Wizards bothered him.

Dinwiddie arrived in Dallas at the trade deadline along with forward Davis Bertans in a deal for Kristaps Porzingis. Dinwiddie signed a three-year, $54 million contract with the Wizards during the offseason, but there were reports that he wasn't well-liked inside the Washington locker room.

«I think that's what hurt the most,» Dinwiddie said after a 36-point, seven-assist performance in the Mavericks' 114-113 win over the Sacramento Kings on Sunday. «I've never bashed Washington. I've never said an ill thing about the team. In fact, I thank the owner or chairman Ted [Leonsis], I thank Tommy Sheppard the GM and I thank [Bradley Beal] for those three kind of collectively deciding to give me my contract. They didn't have to pay somebody coming off an ACL.

»I'm appreciative of that, appreciative of my time there.… So to be bashed out on the way out the door hurt my feelings for sure. I think I'm human, of course."

Dinwiddie has quickly emerged as a major contributor as a sixth man for the Mavs. He's averaged 22.2 points and 6.0 assists while shooting 57.1% from the floor in five games since the All-Star break, playing a major role in closing out a pair of wins over the Golden State Warriors during that span.

«He's been very receptive to coaching and to his teammates, and they trust him,» Dallas coach Jason Kidd said. «That's one of the hardest things is, how fast will the trust take place? I think you can see the trust is at a very high level when he's on