Jason Terry got the Larry O’Brien trophy tattooed on his body *the day before* a preseason game the year the Dallas Mavericks actually won the NBA Finals. Seriously, talk about putting it all on the line before the season even starts! This isn’t just some Dallas legend, this is one of those NBA stories that’ll be told for as long as the ball bounces. Back in 2019, Terry called it “folklore” and a “legend” when talking to Mavs Moneyball’s Mike Taddow. DeShawn Stevenson, a teammate at the time, said he thought Terry was “crazy” when he first saw it, adding, “Wow. And he got that tattoo in October, and it means a lot with what we’ve been through.” That’s the kind of brash confidence that defined that whole squad.
The Ultimate Bet and the Shot That Backed It Up
Getting a tattoo of a trophy you haven’t won yet? That’s not just bold, it’s straight-up Dallas. Donald Miller nailed it in *Through Painted Deserts*, describing Dallas as a city that “blew in on the wings of a Gulf coast hurricane and rained glass and steel onto a field of bluebonnets.” It’s a place where confidence alone can make you a star. Terry brought that swagger big time into the 2010-11 season with that ink, and what’s even better, he absolutely backed it up. He dropped 17.5 points and dished out 3.2 assists per game, shooting 44 percent from deep during that insane postseason run. And then there’s *that shot*. Terry nailed a ridiculous 25-foot shot over LeBron James to seal Game 5 of the Finals. A shot he probably shouldn’t have taken, but only he had the guts to put up. Andrew Tobolowsky summed him up perfectly in 2013, writing, “Never the most talented, far from infallible, always a hero.” That’s exactly the kind of guy who’d take that shot, and make it happen.
More Than Just Numbers, It Was Heart and Fire
Terry stepped up to be the costar Dirk Nowitzki needed for so many years. Dirk was the rock, the steady presence, but Terry was the fire. He straight-up refused to believe anything but a championship was possible. That alone makes him one of the most vital players in Mavericks history. The stats back it up too, of course. He’s eighth in franchise history with 619 games played, third in three-pointers with 1,140, eighth in assists with 2,524, and fifth in steals with 735. As a scorer, he’s seventh all-time with 9,953 points. His playoff numbers are even crazier: third in total playoff points for the Mavs with 1,466 scored, second in playoff games played with 87, and he leads the team in all-time playoff three-pointers with 167. But honestly, this isn’t just about the numbers. It’s about what he meant to that franchise, to Dallas, and showing up even after the heartbreak of the 2006 Finals collapse against Miami. Terry’s legacy is set in stone, just like that tattoo.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Mavs Moneyball.
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