Jason Terry has seen plenty during his 15-plus years in the NBA. But even a veteran sage such as Terry couldn’t help but shake his head at what has transpired in Brooklyn since the Nets traded him to Sacramento shortly before the trade deadline last February.
“I’m surprised a lot,” he said after the Rockets’ morning shootaround Monday ahead of their night game against the Nets. “For me, when I came here it looked like they were going to put something together a big run for two or three years down the line. But when there’s that much pressure on you to win, and it doesn’t happen, they’re gonna make changes.
“Great organization, great arena, new fan base, but the pressure to win in this building is high, and they expect whatever they put on the floor to get it done.”
He also admitted surprise at the way his longtime friend and teammate, Jason Kidd, left the franchise after just one season as coach — splitting for the Bucks amid a power struggle with Nets brass.
“That definitely surprised me,” he said. “Because if you looked at it from the outside looking in, they were going bring back a Hall of Famer, a guy with a retired jersey, a guy who would be here until he was done. But it didn’t work out that way. I’m happy for him, he got a new opportunity, but he easily could just be done coaching now.”
Terry was shipped out, along with Reggie Evans, in a trade for Marcus Thornton last February, a move designed to give the Nets some bench scoring. Terry – who had been expected to give the Nets some scoring pop off the bench after coming to the Nets from Boston with Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce the previous summer – had struggled all season long.
The 37-year-old admitted he was nowhere near 100 percent last season following offseason surgery on his left knee, but said going home and taking the rest of the season off after being traded to the Kings gave him the time he needed to get right.
“I wasn’t healthy at all,” he said. “I was trying to rehab while playing, and it never works that way.
“The reason I did it [played through discomfort with the Nets] was, again, the pressure to win right away. I didn’t want to see our guys fighting and I’m not out there with them. I tried it, it didn’t work, they moved me on, but I was able to get home and get healthy.”
Terry has revived his career off the bench in Houston, at times serving as the Rockets backup point guard while scoring eight points per game and shooting nearly 40 percent from 3-point range. If it holds up, it would be his best shooting performance since 2006-07.
“This has been a blessing,” Terry said. “It’s definitely been a blessing. Leaving [Brooklyn], I didn’t know where I was headed. I went back to Sacramento, losing situation, but I’m thankful for them moving me along, and getting me to where I want to be. Obviously we’ve got a great team, so it’s good.”