Former Mavericks point guard Tyrell Terry, who retired from basketball after just two seasons due to mental health reasons, explained his decision more thoroughly during an interview with Chip Scoggins of The Star Tribune.
The 22-year-old, selected with the No. 31 pick out of Stanford, is back in school following his brief pro stint, now majoring in Science, Technology and Society. Terry’s issues trying to gain weight at the next level prevented him from having the kind of on-court success he had enjoyed at the NCAA level.
“On a daily basis I was trying to convince myself that I loved basketball,” Terry said. “Trying to convince myself that people’s opinions didn’t matter. It became a game of trying to convince myself of something that I didn’t believe in. I realized that’s not how I want to live my life. It was like I was damaging myself.”
During his rookie season, Terry took a two-month personal leave from the team in an effort to deal with persistent anxiety attacks. He consulted with Dallas’ team therapist. The following year, he and his team eventually coordinated his release from the roster in training camp.
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