Free-agent guard Jason Terry is closing in on a three-year contract with the Boston Celtics, sources close to the situation confirmed Tuesday. Terry’s offer from the Celtics is believed to be for the full mid-level exception of $5 million annually.
Sources familiar with the Dallas Mavericks’ thinking told ESPNDallas.com that the team, coveting financial flexibility, is unlikely to match the Celtics’ offer to Terry.
Terry has spent the past eight seasons in Dallas, having replaced Steve Nash in 2004. He won the Sixth Man of the Year Award in 2009 and had a phenomenal playoff run in 2011 to help the Mavs win the franchise’s first NBA championship.
Dallas is still waiting for a decision from Deron Williams on whether the free-agent guard will re-sign with the Brooklyn Nets or join his hometown Mavs. A second source said that Terry’s decision to move forward on a deal with Boston was made with no knowledge of Williams’ plans to either stay in Brooklyn or join the Mavs.
Terry, who will turn 35 before the start of next season, averaged 15.1 points and 3.6 assists last season and shot 37.8 percent from the 3-point range. Fourth on the NBA’s all-time list for 3-pointers made, Terry is a 38-percent 3-point shooter for his career and has averaged 16.1 points per game.
The Celtics continue to be interested in keeping their free-agent sharpshooter Ray Allen, who will visit the NBA champion Miami Heat on Thursday and the Los Angeles Clippers on Friday, league sources told ESPN The Magazine’s Chris Broussard. Allen is one of Miami’s top offseason free-agent targets.
WRITTEN BY  Jeff Caplan and Marc Stein | ESPN.com & FULL STORY HERE
