BOSTON -- Dallas Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle still marvels at all those fourth quarter exploits Jason Terry used to do for his team.
The way Carlisle sees it, Terry's penchant for showing up and showing out in the fourth quarter is the stuff legends do.
"If you look at the history of fourth quarter scoring, fourth quarter production, in the history of the league Jet’s going to rank up there with some of the best that ever played in terms of average points in the fourth, shooting percentage, important shots hit,'' Carlisle said. "All those things.''
For the past eight years, Dirk Nowitzki and Terry used to form one of the most prolific one-two scoring punches in the entire NBA.
"He and Dirk are as good a mixed ball tandem as I’ve seen in recent years,'' Carlisle said. "You go back to (Karl) Malone-(John) Stockton.
"There’s a pair that’s in the same conversation, and they were both starters. They were both featured during longer periods of the game.''
Terry now plays for the Boston Celtics after he failed to come to terms on a new contract with the Mavs this past summer. His absence conjures up images on all the clutch shots he used to make during his tenure with the Mavs.
"At the end of the game I’ve always been so impressed with not only Jet’s production, but when we’d get into the fourth quarter it was like a switch would go on and it would be time for him to kick it in,'' Carlisle said. "And it wasn’t just scoring.
"He kicked it in defensively, play-making, the whole thing. He’s a very, very unique player.''
So unique that Terry often was able to control games while relishing in his role as one of the league's best sixth men.
"He’s one of the best players in the history of this league to never be an All-Star, and he’s an All-Star
caliber player,'' Carlisle said. "There’s no doubt in my mind about that.''
-- Dwain Price
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