According to several reports from NBA sources, the Celtics and Jason Terry have agreed in principle on a three year deal worth about $15 million. This can’t become official until July 11th, when free agents are officially allowed to sign with teams. This signing comes days after the Celtics just locked up their heart and soul, KG, for three more years as well.
Terry, 35, is a veteran guard who is very willing to come off the bench; just look at his 6th man of the year trophy from 2009. He’s played for the Hawks and Mavericks throughout his NBA career and has a career scoring average of 16.1 ppg. In 2011, Terry helped lead the Dallas Mavericks to an NBA championship over the Miami Heat by scoring a game high 27 points in the Game 6 clincher.
In my mind, Danny Ainge has gotten an A so far for his work in the 2012 off-season. They needed to re-sign KG, and he got that done immediately. He signed two potential starters in the draft as well as a possible contributor in the 2nd round. Now, he goes out and gets a pure scorer off the bench in Jason Terry. Why not sign another 35 year old?
Right now the outlook for the Celtics in the 2012-2013 season has some serious potential. They came one win (or one Avery Bradley shoulder) away from a Finals berth and they’re bringing the gang back for another shot at it. Last year their best bench players were Greg Steimsma and a hobbled Mickael Pietrus. This year’s team has the potential to have the best bench in the league if Danny plays his cards right. The Celtics are still planning on going hard after Ray Allen and it seems like Jeff Green and Pietrus should be back too. I also wouldn’t be surprised to see Chris Wilcox in green. Remember that last year he was giving them great minutes before his heart problem caused him to have surgery and miss the 2nd half of the season.
This is only the start of what could be the best off-season in the history of Danny Ainge. Celtics fans can only hope he continues to work his magic and bring in guys who can help hoist up banner number 18.
