Dalen Terry’s latest NBA stop may have ended almost as quickly as it began, and that could send him back to the Santa Cruz Warriors sooner than expected.
The Oklahoma City Thunder waived the young wing on Sunday after completing a trade with the Sacramento Kings, then adding another former first-round pick in Nique Clifford. That move cleared the way for Oklahoma City to part with Terry less than a week after signing him to a two-year contract.
For Terry, it’s another rough turn in a stretch that has seen him waived by three NBA teams in under four months. He was cut by the Philadelphia 76ers in late July after the free agency additions of LeBron James and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, then moved on by Golden State despite turning heads in preseason, and now his time with the Thunder lasted only days.
His Oklahoma City stint did include a little bit of game action. Terry played nearly six garbage time minutes in the fourth quarter of Saturday’s blowout win over the Washington Wizards, and he also logged five minutes in Friday’s victory over the Memphis Grizzlies.
If he does end up back in Santa Cruz, it would be a welcome lift for the Warriors’ G League team, which opened strong with a 127-108 win over the Stockton Kings on Saturday night.
Terry’s preseason work with Golden State was hard to ignore. In the game at Portland when the Warriors rested their main rotation, he got extended run and delivered 23 points, eight rebounds, nine assists and four steals while hitting 4-of-5 from three-point range.
That’s the frustrating part of Terry’s path right now: he’s shown enough talent to look above the G League level, but he still hasn’t found a steady NBA home after spending his first 3.5 seasons with the Chicago Bulls.
The former 18th overall pick also faces a contract wrinkle that makes the road back tougher. He is no longer eligible for a two-way deal as a fifth-year player, after finishing last season on a two-way contract with the 76ers.
For now, the next move may be simple: get back to work, produce in the G League, and hope another NBA opening comes along later in the season.
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