Coach on the floor: Jason Terry’s veteran leadership provides boost to Bucks’ playoff chase

The word love is both meaningfully and totally loaded. In basketball circles, it is usually used to describe a player’s affinity for the game. Love can also exist between teammates, building brotherly love through their shared on-court challenges.

The same type of relationship can also exist between a coach and player as Gregg Popovich showed during Tim Duncan’s jersey retirement ceremony in December. And while it may not be on the same level of Pop and Duncan, Blazers coach Terry Stotts has that same type of love for Bucks veteran Jason Terry, who he coached with the Hawks and Mavs.

“I love Jason Terry,” Stotts said before Milwaukee defeated Portland 93-90 on Tuesday. “He’s a great veteran. He loves being in the NBA. He loves the game of basketball, probably as much as any player I know.”

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Stotts isn’t being hyperbolic here. Terry’s love for the game and enthusiasm to be a mentor to younger players is quite evident. So much so that even in his 18th season and at the age of 39, Terry still gleefully breaks out into his patented fighter jet celebration whenever he’s given the opportunity.

But besides for providing some brief moments of levity and revelry with his celebrations, Terry actually plays a crucial role on the Bucks, acting as a veteran presence on and off the floor. And while being a veteran role player that provides guidance and leadership to a young team like the Bucks may seem a bit cliche, Terry’s contributions have been important for Milwaukee.

“[Terry’s] been great for us,” Bucks coach Jason Kidd said. “He is helping the guys understand what it means to be a pro, what it means to work on your game. We are very lucky to have him.”

Kidd’s relationship with Terry, is the main reason the veteran guard is on the team. The two played together in Dallas and were part of the Mavs team that won the championship in 2011. Their relationship then shifted from being teammates to a coach/player one, when Terry got traded to the Brooklyn Nets in 2013, where Kidd was coaching.

Terry directly credits his experience with Kidd in Brooklyn for inspiring him to chase a coaching career when he finally retires from playing. Acting as a mentor to other players and being vocal on the floor was nothing new for Terry but in Brooklyn, Kidd’s openness to listen to his team, impressed him. It was a different side of Kidd that Terry had not seen before and it helped to inspire his desire to be a coach after he retired.

“In Brooklyn with [Kidd], was where I really started to have the idea, that I wanted to coach when I’m done,” Terry told The Step Back. “He told me straight up no problem, when you are done, you can sit on my bench anytime.”

Terry’s coaching may still be a year or two away as his playing days are still going strong. While he may not be making the same type of impact in the box score that other older players like Vince Carter and Richard Jefferson are making for their respective teams, Terry is solidly part of the rotation in Milwaukee, averaging 18.3 minutes a game. Terry’s 3-point shooting (40.3 percent) helps Milwaukee space the floor, his playmaking skills provide balance and he is still agile enough to contribute on defense.

“He’s not even just playing, he’s contributing when he’s on the floor,” Bucks rookie Malcolm Brogdon told The Step Back. “It’s a big shoutout to what he accomplished throughout his career. It speaks a lot to how he’s taken care of himself, how much of a professional he is and how much of an example he sets for all of us everyday.”

This role Terry is playing, helping lead young players like Brogdon, on and off the floor, is exactly why he is in Milwaukee.

The Bucks lacked a veteran and leader in the locker room last season and that coupled with their youth, played a role in Milwaukee having a lackluster year, instead of building on their postseason appearance in 2014. With an average age of 25.8, Milwaukee is still one of the youngest teams in the league, which is why Kidd reached out to Terry last summer to join the Bucks. And after taking a look around the league, Terry realized that the opportunity Kidd was offering him, was one he couldn’t pass up.

“I looked at their roster, understanding that they have a young core but not too young, to where the goal is to not be in the postseason,” Terry told The Step Back. “ I feel like with my veteran presence, I can be that guy that can push them towards their postseason goal. [While] also aiding their young guy’s growth and development.”

Terry also viewed the opportunity Kidd offered him in Milwaukee as a stepping stone on the path to him becoming a coach. Terry interviewed for the open head coaching position at the University of Alabama-Birmingham last April, while he was still with the Rockets. That opportunity didn’t work out but Terry has found a situation just as helpful. Kidd is helping Terry fuel this passion, involving him heavily in Milwaukee’s coaching strategy.

“He’s allowed me to be in a lot of coaching meetings, part of all the game planning, part of the player development,” Terry told The Step Back. “All of that is helping me get on the job training for when I retire.”

The Bucks have several coaches on the staff that have played in the NBA. There is Kidd of course, but Greg Foster and Stacey Augmon are also former players. Because of this wealth of NBA experience, Terry fits right in and envisions himself as a coach on the floor. This is a role he takes ownership of, communicating with his teammates on the court and then providing insight to Kidd during timeouts.

“Obviously they don’t need as much scoring from me as I used to do,” Terry said. “But [I] provide that calming veteran presence, getting guys in position to where they are supposed to be. You could only do so much from the bench, [Kidd’s] giving me the playing time to help the guys on the court.”

While a large portion of Milwaukee’s success this season can be linked to All-Star forward Giannis Antetokounmpo, Terry’s mentorship and leadership has also made a difference. This is a difference that is not as visible but is still equally important. And with the Bucks likely to make the playoffs, it’s one that Terry equates to as a direct result of his player/coach role on the team.

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“In [my] first year in Houston, we get to the Western Conference Finals, which we weren’t projected to do,” Terry told The Step Back. “The next year we had some injuries, had some bad chemistry but both years we were playoff teams. And now I come here. They weren’t in the playoffs last year [but] this year it looks like a very real possibility.”