Jason Terry ‘Very Surprised’ Mavericks Didn’t Match His Offer from the Celtics

The Dallas Mavericks are in rebuilding, cost-slashing mode (and have been for quite some time now), but somehow, free agent guard Jason Terry had failed to read the tea leaves when he agreed to a deal with the Boston Celtics. Per RF Sports Radio (via the Dallas Morning News): “I had three teams looking at me and Dallas didn’t come to the table,’ Terry said. ‘Had I got the same phone call from Dallas, I’d still be there. But I didn’t.’ The Mavericks made it clear that they did not want to go three years to keep Terry, who agreed to a three-year deal worth north of $15 million with the Celtics. Did that leave him surprised? ‘Very surprised,’ he said. ‘What I was able to do for the organization and the community, I thought they would bring me back. But things happen in life. It may not always go your way. God always puts you in a position where he wants you.’ That position will be shooting 3-pointers for the Celtics after Wednesday, when Terry’s eight-year career with the Mavericks will officially end. But Terry offered a big thank-you to the people in Dallas and with the Mavericks while also hinting that his days with the franchise might not be over. ‘I look back and if I never went to Dallas, would I be where I am today? I don’t think so,’ Terry said. ‘I had great teammates, a great coach and a great owner. And what the city meant to me was priceless. The fans, without them, I’m nothing. The Jet was born in Dallas and hopefully, when I’m done, I can go back and end my career there.’ However, Terry left no doubt about where his new allegiance will lie. ‘To the fans, I love you, I appreciate all your hard work,’ he said. ‘But they got to pay when we come to town. The big green machine is coming to town soon.’”