Jason

Terry

He’ll be on Will Hardy’s staff after initially interviewing for head coaching job last month. Terry will get another step closer to a head-coaching job with the move from the G League where he was head coach of Grand Rapids.

Terry is a former NBA champion and Sixth Man of the Year. His vast NBA experience could prove beneficial for a Jazz squad that hasn’t been able to make it past the second round. The Jazz have plenty of other candidates to interview, while Terry is receiving interest as an assistant coach around the league. In the Gold’s first year in the G League, Terry coached both Isaiah Thomas and Nik Stauskas to big performances, while guiding the team to a 22-23 record.

Terry, who most recently was an assistant coach at Arizona, is poised to take on his first head coaching position. The Gold are the G League affiliate of the Denver Nuggets. Terry, who played 19 seasons in the NBA, originally agreed to remain on the Arizona staff under new head coach Tommy Lloyd. But his decision to ultimately leave Tucson comes as no surprise, and this move gets Terry closer to the NBA.

Barea last played for the Mavericks in 2020, before playing this season in his native country of Puerto Rico. Terry is currently an assistant coach at his alma mater, Arizona University. Both Terry and Barea were teammates of Kidd in 2011 when the Mavericks won their only championship in franchise history. With Maverick legend, Dirk Nowitzki, in a special advisor role with the franchise, and another former Maverick Michael Finley in the front office, there is a family affair in Dallas, that looks to be growing by the day.

Does Dallas “particularly stress defense”? Not in recent years. Terry does, however, have strong defensive skills going back to his days at the University of Arizona. Coach Don Nelson thinks he and backup Devin Harris can pick up opposing point guards, work the shot clock, limit penetration, and contest shots better than predecessor Steve Nash.

Marquis Daniels and Jason Terry will continue coming off the bench behind Josh Howard and Devin Harris. Terry played 39 minutes, with 18 points and five assists, in relief of Harris last night.

Terry plans to suit up for Sunday’s game at Denver.

That’s the same injury that has Michael Finley on the IL, but Dallas says Terry is “day-to-day.”

He was obviously motivated by the fact that Darrell Armstrong was a new arrival in Dallas as well. However, it looks like Devin Harris is going to take the big hit on playing time, with Armstrong and Terry getting a majority of the minutes at point guard. Interestingly, referring to Harris, coach Don Nelson said “You can’t really rely on a rookie, or you might miss the playoffs.” Interesting that he didn’t think about that before naming Harris his starter as the season started.

JT expects to play Sunday against Milwaukee. Coach Don Nelson expressed his frustration with his point guards this week, calling Darrell Armstrong too old, Devin Harris too young, and Terry not a true point guard.