Jason Terry is expected to be meeting with the Timberwolves front office some time today to discuss the possibility of signing with Minnesota for what will likely be his final season. The soon-to-be 40 year old JET has remained unsigned throughout this crazy offseason period, although the general consensus was that the Milwaukee Bucks would eventually resign their most prominent veteran leader.
Terry may now have his choice between Milwaukee and Minnesota, two teams that figure to see similar levels of success this season. The recently released Las Vegas over/under projections have the Bucks predicted to win 47.5 games, and the Timberwolves at 48.5. Of course, Minnesota plays in the super-loaded Western Conference, so Milwaukee may end up with a better playoff seed and a better chance at reaching the Finals, when all is said and done.
Jason Terry became something of a Bucks legend last season. A wily vet, and longtime friend of Head Coach Jason Kidd, Terry’s presence around the young Bucks was invaluable in the locker room, on the bench, and on the court. In their first round playoff series against the Toronto Raptors, Terry provided quality minutes off the bench for a team that was devoid of depth at the guard spots and needed someone who could take care of the ball and play intelligently.
Terry likely won’t be asked to play many minutes, either in Minnesota or Milwaukee, but that isn’t where his value lies at this point in his career. The Wolves have a plethora of recent veteran acquisitions this offseason (Jimmy Butler, Jeff Teague, Jamal Crawford, Taj Gibson) to promote the type of culture they want to build. For this reason, I think Terry’s presence is much more valuable to the Bucks this season. Milwaukee has some young guards (Rashad Vaughn, Sterling Brown) who they are trying to develop, as well as undrafted rookie Bronson Koenig on a two-way deal, all of whom could benefit greatly from having the JET around.
Milwaukee has been sitting on their last vacant roster spot since they decided to waive center Spencer Hawes. While it has been assumed that Terry is their only target for that spot, they may soon have to explore other options. Minnesota remains active in trying to acquire more veteran leadership to fill out their bench, and are rumored to be bringing in former Kings’ guard Marcus Thornton for a workout as well.
