WS Chronicle

For Reyshawn Terry, success on the basketball court comes easy because of the hard work he has put in over the years.  The former R.J. Reynolds great has won championships on the high school and collegiate levels and seeks to do the same on the professional level playing overseas.

Reyshawn has had a solid career playing overseas.  He says he has played in 13 different countries.  He said the best part of playing overseas is becoming globally known. 

“One of the most gratifying things about playing overseas is that you’re not only known in the United States but you become recognized everywhere,” Terry said.

He played this past season in Okinawa, Japan.  He says it was a thrill to play there along with seeing the history of the country in relation to its connection with the United States.

Terry is married and has three children.  He says it’s tough sometimes being away from them during the season but he is used to it by now. 

He says he knows his career will end sooner than later and may possibly go into coaching or become an entrepreneur upon retirement.  He says winning a championship overseas would be a great conclusion to his career, but he doesn’t have plans to retire any time soon.

Even at the age of 33, Terry still has a humble demeanor and still loves to visit family and friends whenever he is in town.  He says going back to the places where he grew up keeps him grounded along with keeping in touch with local friends.

Terry grew up in Winston-Salem and moved around the city a few times as a youth.  He initially entered high school at Robert B. Glenn High School in Kernersville.  Midway through his junior year, Terry moved again and transferred to Reynolds in the middle of the season prompting the “Reyshawn Terry rule” in Forsyth County, which states that a player may not play for multiple teams during the same season.

Once he reached Reynolds, Terry’s profile skyrocketed as he led the Demons to a state championship in his first season there.  Along with winning the state title, he was named Most Valuable Player of the state championships.  That summer his AAU team that featured Chris Paul went on to win the 17 and under national championship.

Following a phenomenal senior season, he was offered a scholarship by the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill under then head coach Matt Daugherty.  He was a highly touted recruit that had numerous offers to play college basketball but says he chose North Carolina because of the school’s tremendous history in the sport.

“Wake Forest was recruiting me since my freshman year in high school but I didn’t think that would be the right fit for me because it was too close to home,” he said.  “I wanted to be further out but not too far away so that my family could come and see me play.  Carolina was the perfect fit because of that and the tradition of the basketball program.”

Terry says his freshman year was tough because the coach who had recruited him resigned and legendary head coach Roy Williams took over the North Carolina program.

“For those who know about the whole recruiting process, its rather tough when you’re a new player that was not a part of the new coaches recruiting class,” said Terry.  “It’s kind of like you get lost in the shuffle, and that’s what happened my freshman and sophomore years.”

During his sophomore season, the Tar Heels went on to win the national championship.  After that season, many of the top players in the program left for the NBA draft, leaving Terry as one of the few veteran holdovers from the previous year.

Entering his junior year, he was leaned upon as one of the go-to guys on the team.  He went on to average 14.3 points that season.  He was also named to the All-ACC third team and had the second highest point increase in Tar Heel history.  He finished the year second on the team in scoring, three pointers made and blocked shots.

He says he contemplated leaving for the draft after his junior season but decided to return for his senior season.  His senior season did not go the way he particularly wanted it to, but he still was a solid contributor on a team that went to the Sweet 16 round in the NCAA tournament, losing to the Georgetown Hoyas.  He graduated from Chapel Hill with a Bachelor of Arts in African-American studies.

Following graduation, he was drafted in the second round of the NBA draft with the 44th overall pick by the Orlando Magic in 2007.  He was traded to the Dallas Mavericks on draft day for cash and another player.  He did not make the season roster and decided to play overseas in Greece.  He later returned to the United States and played for the Portland Trail Blazers on the summer league team but did not make the roster, so he went back overseas to play.