Jason Eugene Terry (born September 15, 1977 in Seattle, Washington) is an American professional basketball player currently playing with the Dallas Mavericks. He plays point guard, although he also can play shooting guard. His nickname, "The JET", derives from his initials.

Terry was born in Seattle, one of ten children raised by a single mother. One of his brothers, Curtis, currently plays college basketball for UNLV. He has a tattoo of the number 206 on his chest, recognizing the area code of his former neighborhood. He developed into an exceptional basketball player in high school; on February 2, 2007 Terry's number (31) was retired at Franklin High School.

Terry was drafted out of the University of Arizona by the Atlanta Hawks in the 1999 NBA Draft as the 10th overall selection. After spending his first five seasons with the Hawks, Terry was traded to the Mavericks just prior to the start of the 2004-05 season. He had a mediocre first few months with the Mavericks, the reason for which he cites to be he was trying to play the game of Steve Nash, whom he'd replaced, and not his own.[citation needed] He eventually came into his own, putting up solid numbers and by the end of the season earning his spot as the Mavs' number one guard.

In the 2004-05 NBA Playoffs, Terry averaged 17.5 points on 51% shooting while hitting 49% from three point range in his first playoff run. Yet his team failed to advance to the conference finals, losing its 2nd round series 4-2 to Nash's Phoenix Suns. In game 6 of that series Terry got in a confrontation with teammate Dirk Nowitzki, who was frustrated by his own erratic play during the playoffs, for committing the crucial error of backing off of Steve Nash in the final seconds of regulation with his team up by 3, who subsequently hit the 3 point shot to send the game into overtime resulting eventually in the second round ouster of the Mavericks.[citation needed]

In the final seconds of game 5, of the 2005-06 NBA Western Conference playoff semi-finals against the San Antonio Spurs, Terry in closeups was shown punching opposing guard and former teammate Michael Finley in the groin. On May 18, 2006, Jason Terry was suspended without pay from game 6. Despite losing game six, the Mavericks were able to close out the series in game seven to advance to the Western Conference Finals. In game 6 of the 2006 NBA Finals, Terry shot 7-25 from the field and 2-11 from three point territory as the cold shooting Mavericks were eliminated in 6 games by the champion Heat.

On July 1, 2006, after spending only 12 hours on the free-agent market, Jason Terry agreed to a 6-year contract with the Dallas Mavericks.

Once criticized for his shot selection as a Hawk, Terry transformed himself into a better shooter. Other than his shooting, Terry is also a quick penetrator who can drive toward the basket for layups or use his favorite teardrop shot. Analysts point out that that Terry's assist numbers are low for a point guard and that he is actually a tweener, or a shooting guard trapped in a point guard's body. Since the insertion of Devin Harris at point guard in the 2006-2007 season, Terry has been starting at shooting guard for the Mavericks.

Terry is known as a superstitious player, wearing five pairs of socks each game. According to a May 2006 edition of Sports Illustrated, he also makes it a point to sleep in the game shorts of the next day's opponent the night before a game. His collection includes shorts worn by Mike Bibby and Gilbert Arenas.

Terry was also a member of the United States squad for the 2001 Goodwill Games in Brisbane, Australia.
Source : Wikipedia