Jason Terry is bringing unnecessary drama to the Utah Jazz

The last thing the Utah Jazz needs right now is a coach engaged in some sort of controversy.

The Utah Jazz are looking at a promising 2023 right in the face. They sent five players to the FIBA World Cup, and besides Walker Kessler, who has barely played compared to his Jazz teammates, the other four men have played perfectly. The other four men all showed what they could provide to the team. They have a host of draft picks, expiring contracts, and the ability to make several major swings without losing any momentum down the line.

This is a team ready to jump into the high end of the NBA, and the last thing they needed was one of their coaches, allegedly, stealing a 23.5-carat stainless steel customized watch from a famed jeweler named Eric Mavachev, aka Eric Mavani, aka “Eric Da Jeweler”. And while it’s the last thing they need, it’s exactly what’s happening as famed Dallas Mavericks guard and current Jazz assistant coach, Jason Terry, is being sued for stealing the watch.

The New York Post reports that Terry had rented the timepiece for an event, and never delivered on the agreed-upon price, with the Post writing;

"On July 10, Terry, 45 — who also played on the Atlanta Hawks, Boston Celtics and Dallas Mavericks — texted Mavachev asking for his bank account information, saying he’d wire the money on July 13, the court papers claim.But the money never came and the 2011 NBA Champion never returned the wristwatch, the suit claims. Terry also ghosted Mavachev in a message from the next day saying he never received the funds, the filing alleges."

Terry’s legal issues are now becoming a distraction to the team. This seems like a pretty cut-and-dry situation, and you’d think someone of his pedigree would be able to pay the jeweler in question to keep this from going to court. You’d also think that he’d just return the watch, assuming he has it, to just avoid this whole situation.

Terry has had a promising start to his coaching career, leading the Denver Nuggets’ G-League squad, the Grand Rapids Gold, to the G-League title in 2021, and joined the Jazz with the new coaching crew in 2022.

This is not the situation the team needs to be dealing with, and the Jazz’s head coach, Will Hardy, is going to have to determine how much of a headache he’s willing to endure. If this goes to trial, Terry could miss time on the bench, and for what? A watch he (allegedly) won’t return or pay for?

Not a good start to the ’23-’24 season at all for the Jazz.