Jason Terry Inexplicably Calls Kawhi Leonard and Klay Thompson 'B-Side' Players

Jason Terry calls Kawhi Leonard and Klay Thompson "B-side players."

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Complex Original

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Throughout the course of his 17-year NBA career, Jason Terry has never been known as a guy who censors himself (see Exhibit A here). And now that he's 39, it's unlikely that that's ever going to change. So it wasn't really all that surprising to hear what the Bucks guard had to say this week when he was asked on SiriusXM Radio to name which shooting guard he thinks is better—Klay Thompson or James Harden. Terry pulled no punches and got pretty petty with his answer.

"He's not leading shit," Terry said while speaking about Thompson. "If he doesn't make shots, how effective is he?" He then added: "Go watch Klay Thompson versus James Harden from last year and see what James did to him. Every time James got by him, you know who was there? Draymond Green or Andrew Bogut. Let's see what happens this time around."

Well then. Terry did go on to say that he's "not a Klay Thompson hater"—he actually went as far as to say that "Klay is a better shooter than Steph [Curry]" and that "his jump shot is just pure beauty"—but he also said "there's no comparison" when you put Harden and Thompson up against one another.

And Terry didn't stop there. Once he was done dissing Thompson, he was asked to rattle off the best players in the league. He did so by listing Steph Curry, LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook, James Harden, and Chris Paul and calling them "A-side players." And just in case you don't know what an "A-side player" is, Terry explained himself by saying, "The A-side is your superstar." Then, he suggested that both Thompson and Kawhi Leonard are "B-side players," or guys who you can't count on to lead your team.

"The B-side performers in the NBA, that is Kawhi Leonard and Klay Thompson," he said. "B-side means a supporting cast role but not really a bench player."

Hmmm..."B-side players"? Leonard is a two-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year, an All-Star, a former NBA Finals MVP, and the heir apparent to Tim Duncan in San Antonio. And Thompson is an NBA All-Star, a two-time All-NBA third teamer, one-half of the Splash Brothers, and one of the best shooters the league has ever seen. So again: "B-side players"?

You can listen to Terry (try to!) explain himself here:

w.soundcloud.com

 

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