Dalen Terry worked out Tuesday for the Indiana Pacers in what could be his final test of the NBA Draft waters before having to decide whether he will stay in the draft or return to Arizona for his junior season.
Terry told the Pacers that he's talked to everyone around him and that the decision is now up to him. He said last season was "the best basketball year of my life, honestly," but did not indicate whether he would return to the Wildcats or not.
.@ArizonaMBB guard Dalen Terry (@dalenterry) says he's looking to show teams his versatility in pre-draft workouts and reflects on the best basketball year of his life after leading the Wildcats from unranked to a No. 1 seed in the tournament.#GoldOnTheClock pic.twitter.com/pWX81tP6E8
— Indiana Pacers (@Pacers) May 31, 2022
The NCAA-imposed deadline for players to withdraw from the NBA Draft and return to school is Wednesday, or 10 days after the NBA Combine ended.ย
Terry was initially expected to return to Arizona but his draft stock reportedly has risen to the point where he might opt to leave. Terry indicated at the NBA Combine that he would leave if he is assured of a first-round draft pick, and ESPN's latest mock draft has him projected to go No. 27 overall, or with the fourth-to-last pick of the first round.
Wrote ESPN's Jonathan Givony, in the introduction to his latest mock draft, "where will the standouts of the pre-draft process, including Santa Clara's Jalen Williams and Arizona's Dalen Terry, be selected?"
USA Today has Terry going No. 28 but mock drafts from 247, CBS, NBC and the Ringer do not have Terry in the first round.
The Pacers have draft picks at No. 6, in the mid-lottery, and at No. 31, the first pick of the second round.
Any player taken late in the first round is guaranteed a two-year contract worth at least $4 million. Players taken early in the second round often get guaranteed contracts even though teams are not obligated to provide one, while some other second round picks sign two-way deals that will be worth about $500,000 next season.
However, if Terry returns to Arizona and moves up to the lottery (top 14 picks) for the 2023 Draft he would be guaranteed a two-year contract worth at least $7 million.
