Jason Terry is leading candidate to fill Arizona’s assistant coaching vacancy, per report

Arizona Wildcats legend Jason Terry has emerged as the leading candidate to fill the team’s assistant coaching vacancy, according to Stadium’s Jeff Goodman.

Terry would replace Justin Gainey who recently left to become the new associate head coach at Marquette. The UA currently has a hiring freeze in place due to the coronavirus crisis, so it could be a while before a move is officially made, though Terry hinted that it’s in the works:

Terry, 42, does not have any coaching experience at the collegiate level, but his connections on the West Coast (he’s also a legend in Seattle), stardom as an NBA player, and his storied history with the Wildcats would make him a valuable asset to the Arizona coaching staff.

Terry is currently a coach and co-president of Lady Drive Nation, an AAU club in the Dallas area, so it’s not like he doesn’t have any coaching experience.

Terry retired from the NBA after the 2017-18 season after 19 seasons in the league, which included stints with the Atlanta Hawks, Dallas Mavericks, Boston Celtics, Brooklyn Nets, Houston Rockets and Milwaukee Bucks.

Terry won a championship with the Mavericks in 2011 and was the Sixth Man of the Year with them in 2008-09, a role he mastered throughout his basketball career, showing the kind of selflessness that college players can learn from.

Before Terry was the 10th overall pick in the 1999 NBA Draft, he spent four years at Arizona, where he won a national championship in 1997 as a key scorer off the bench. As a senior in 1998-99 he was the Pac-10 Player of the Year and a consensus All-American.

Terry had his No. 31 jersey retired in February 2015.