PLANO -- Preparing to pack up and move across country from Dallas to Boston has been rough on Jason Terry, his wife and their four daughters.
“Their friends are calling them now and they’re trying to do going-away parties,’’ Terry told the Star-Telegram on Monday. “They were just as much a part of this community as I was.
“This is family here. Dallas is my second home. It’s family.’’
Terry’s daughters are Jasionna (14), Jalayah (11), Jaida (8) and Jasa (5). They attended the same all-girls school – Hockaday – as coach Rick Carlisle’s daughter, owner Mark Cuban’s daughter and president Terdema Ussery’s daughter.
“They all went to school together, and played on the same soccer team,’’ Terry said. “So it’s difficult for them.
“Every day they’re looking at their room and saying, ‘We’re packing up and we’ve got to leave.’ Their friends are calling them like we’re going to miss you guys, write us, call us and keep in touch.’’
Terry spent the past eight years playing for the Dallas Mavericks while setting some comfortable surroundings for his family. But when he couldn’t get a new free agent contract with the Mavs last month, Terry signed a three-year, $15 million deal with the Boston Celtics.
That meant pulling up stakes and moving to an area where adjustments will definitely need to be made. And Terry knows adults can make the adjustments often quicker than kids.
Terry and his family will leave for Boston on Saturday. In their suitcases are tons of ever-lasting memories they’ve enjoyed during their stay in the Fort Worth-Dallas area.
“But we’re still going to be visible here, because my AAU programs – and I’m adding a boys team this year --- is going to still be here,’’ Terry said. “So when the summertime comes I’ll be back in Dallas and I’ll be coaching, I’ll be at the tournaments, and that’s going to be fun for me.’’
As far as school in Boston for his daughters is concerned, school doesn’t start until after Labor Day.
“So the girls were happy on the one end,’’ Terry said, “in that they’ll get an extra long summer.’’
-- Dwain Price
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