When four-star Tempe wing Dalen Terry played on a court adjacent to fellow Arizona recruiting target MarJon Beauchamp during a club tournament earlier this month in Alabama, UA coach Sean Miller and two of his assistants parked themselves in front of Terry.
“The whole staff is on me hard right now,” Terry said after that game.
UA’s focus paid off Tuesday, when Terry announced on Twitter that he committed to the Wildcats, becoming their first high school class of 2020 player and continuing UA’s trend of pulling in players with Arizona ties.
“This is where I’m from and this is where I’m gonna stay,” Terry said on his announcement video. “I’ll be attending the University of Arizona. Bear Down.”
Having played two seasons at Tempe Corona del Sol High School — where he was a teammates of former Wildcat guard Alex Barcello as a freshman — Terry transferred last season to Phoenix Hillcrest Prep and has been spending the summer with the Compton Magic, a prestigious Adidas-sponsored club in Southern California.
Terry is the first Magic player to commit to UA since Gabe York did so in 2011, while he’s the fourth player with Arizona ties to commit to the Wildcats in the past 12 months, following Nico Mannion and relocated Australian Josh Green of Phoenix, plus Scottsdale Bella Vista wing Terry Armstrong (who later opted to play professionally in Australia).
“Welcome to the fam bro,” Green tweeted in response to Terry’s video.
Things moved quickly in Arizona’s pursuit. Terry said on July 13 in Alabama that he was still open to a number of Pac-12 and SEC schools but an unofficial visit he took last month to Tucson left an impression.
“It was good,” Terry said. “I just got the offer and I had never been down to U of A or Tucson before. So it was a great time to be down there.”
A 6-foot-6, 190-pound wing, Terry is a long and versatile scorer who also has potential to excel defensively. Josh Gershon, a California-based 247 recruiting analyst, noted that Terry just turned 17 earlier this month and might also still be growing.
“Terry’s best single attribute may be his passing ability, as he has outstanding vision and is constantly looking to create for teammates,” Gershon wrote. “While he can score efficiently, Terry is unselfish offensively and has no problem playing the role of facilitator.
“Even though his handle is playable, improving against ball pressure would allow him to be at least a secondary ball-handler at the next level as opposed to his floor as a playmaking wing. Terry is a better shooter than you would expect a long athlete who potentially is still growing to be.”
Terry will join sit-out transfers Jemarl Baker and Jordan Brown with the Wildcats in 2020-21, replacing Green if he leaves after one season as expected.
