The former Boardman and Ohio State standout played last year in France.
By JOE SCALZO
VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF
With his NBA chances dwindling and his girlfriend and daughter still at home in Columbus, former Ohio State standout Terence Dials set out last August to start his professional basketball career in a city outside Paris, France called Orleans.
Fortunately for him, he took French at Boardman High School.
Unfortunately for him, it didn't stick.
"I forgot every word except 'bonjour,' " said Dials, laughing. "I kind of had to fend for myself. Once you get outside Paris, most people don't speak English, so you've gotta go with the flow and hope some of the guys on your team can help you out."
After a successful first season that saw Dials land on the French league's all-star team, he returned to Columbus in late May to resume his quest to make the NBA.
Cavs summer league team
He eventually signed with the Cleveland Cavaliers' summer league team in Las Vegas, although he's struggled to get playing time, averaging just three minutes per contest through the first four games.
"It's kind of frustrating," said Dials. "The reason I picked this team was because they didn't have any big guys coming to camp, but at the last minute two guys signed on and they've been getting all the minutes.
"I'm sort of stuck in limbo."
Dials (6-foot-9, 250 pounds), the Big Ten Player of the Year in 2006, played with the Toronto Raptors during last year's summer league and did well enough to earn an invitation to training camp in the fall. Problem was, the Raptors couldn't guarantee a paycheck.
"Usually that means they're not that serious," said Dials.
At the same time, Dials had a few offers to play overseas from teams offering him a chance to play professionally at a decent wage.
"I didn't just want to be a practice player [for the Raptors]," said Dials.
Has a new contract
Dials enjoyed his new surroundings — he signed a contract to return to the French league in August provided he doesn't get an NBA deal — although France had its positives and negatives. The language, obviously, was a barrier, as was the time away from his girlfriend. Dials popped the question on Christmas Day when he returned home for the holidays (she said yes, obviously). They have yet to set a date.
"Being away was a little tough at first, but it wasn't as bad as people think," said Dials, who lives in a townhouse in Columbus and whose mother still lives in Boardman.
One thing Dials never did get used to is the European tradition of charging people to use public restrooms. The adjustment to seeing so many beautiful women, particularly in Paris, wasn't quite as difficult.
"When you go outside Paris, the girls aren't as beautiful and neither is the scenery," said Dials. "Once you get inside Paris, it's what's up."
Dials, playing for Entente Orleans, averaged 13.4 points and 6.5 rebounds in 34 games, helping Orleans reach the Semaine Des As final eight. If he returns, he'll play this season for Pau, which is in the southern part of France.
"Not bad for a first-year guy," he said of his performance. "It's hard to score a lot of points the way they play defense. There's a big team aspect. I was the leading scorer, but the second-leading scorer had 13 a game and we had two other guys averaging 12 and 10, so it's really spread around."
Different style of play
Europeans play a different style of basketball than Americans, relying more on fundamentals and less on athletic ability, Dials said.
"That's why those guys are so successful when they come over here," he said. "Their coaches teach the fundamentals of the game so well. They don't need to be so athletic; they can still beat us.
"They play team basketball. I've brought some of that style with me over here and sometimes the coaches like it and sometimes they don't. You've just gotta roll with the punches."
The Cavaliers played their fifth and final summer league game Saturday night, so Dials hasn't had much chance to show his development, but he hasn't given up.
"I'm still hoping to open a few eyes and show the scouts I'm still a good player," said Dials.
His replacement at Ohio State, All-America center Greg Oden, didn't play much in the summer league, either, missing several of Portland's games after getting his tonsils removed.
Dials actually stayed up and watched almost every Buckeye game last season on his computer (France is six hours ahead of the Eastern Time Zone) and was happy to see his team's success following his graduation.
"They were a little overmatched against Florida, but overall they had a great year," he said. "I didn't know a lot of the new guys, but I was really happy for the coaching staff. Those guys work so hard and they deserved the success."
He was also happy for another of his former coaches, Dan Gorski, who coached him with the Spartans and was recently hired at Liberty.
"Yeah, I definitely need to call and congratulate him on that," he said.
scalzo@vindy.com
Sunday, July 15, 2007
The former Boardman and Ohio State standout played last year in France.
By JOE SCALZO
VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF
With his NBA chances dwindling and his girlfriend and daughter still at home in Columbus, former Ohio State standout Terence Dials set out last August to start his professional basketball career in a city outside Paris, France called Orleans.
Fortunately for him, he took French at Boardman High School.
Unfortunately for him, it didn't stick.
"I forgot every word except 'bonjour,' " said Dials, laughing. "I kind of had to fend for myself. Once you get outside Paris, most people don't speak English, so you've gotta go with the flow and hope some of the guys on your team can help you out."
After a successful first season that saw Dials land on the French league's all-star team, he returned to Columbus in late May to resume his quest to make the NBA.
Cavs summer league team
He eventually signed with the Cleveland Cavaliers' summer league team in Las Vegas, although he's struggled to get playing time, averaging just three minutes per contest through the first four games.
"It's kind of frustrating," said Dials. "The reason I picked this team was because they didn't have any big guys coming to camp, but at the last minute two guys signed on and they've been getting all the minutes.
"I'm sort of stuck in limbo."
Dials (6-foot-9, 250 pounds), the Big Ten Player of the Year in 2006, played with the Toronto Raptors during last year's summer league and did well enough to earn an invitation to training camp in the fall. Problem was, the Raptors couldn't guarantee a paycheck.
"Usually that means they're not that serious," said Dials.
At the same time, Dials had a few offers to play overseas from teams offering him a chance to play professionally at a decent wage.
"I didn't just want to be a practice player [for the Raptors]," said Dials.
Has a new contract
Dials enjoyed his new surroundings — he signed a contract to return to the French league in August provided he doesn't get an NBA deal — although France had its positives and negatives. The language, obviously, was a barrier, as was the time away from his girlfriend. Dials popped the question on Christmas Day when he returned home for the holidays (she said yes, obviously). They have yet to set a date.
"Being away was a little tough at first, but it wasn't as bad as people think," said Dials, who lives in a townhouse in Columbus and whose mother still lives in Boardman.
One thing Dials never did get used to is the European tradition of charging people to use public restrooms. The adjustment to seeing so many beautiful women, particularly in Paris, wasn't quite as difficult.
"When you go outside Paris, the girls aren't as beautiful and neither is the scenery," said Dials. "Once you get inside Paris, it's what's up."
Dials, playing for Entente Orleans, averaged 13.4 points and 6.5 rebounds in 34 games, helping Orleans reach the Semaine Des As final eight. If he returns, he'll play this season for Pau, which is in the southern part of France.
"Not bad for a first-year guy," he said of his performance. "It's hard to score a lot of points the way they play defense. There's a big team aspect. I was the leading scorer, but the second-leading scorer had 13 a game and we had two other guys averaging 12 and 10, so it's really spread around."
Different style of play
Europeans play a different style of basketball than Americans, relying more on fundamentals and less on athletic ability, Dials said.
"That's why those guys are so successful when they come over here," he said. "Their coaches teach the fundamentals of the game so well. They don't need to be so athletic; they can still beat us.
"They play team basketball. I've brought some of that style with me over here and sometimes the coaches like it and sometimes they don't. You've just gotta roll with the punches."
The Cavaliers played their fifth and final summer league game Saturday night, so Dials hasn't had much chance to show his development, but he hasn't given up.
"I'm still hoping to open a few eyes and show the scouts I'm still a good player," said Dials.
His replacement at Ohio State, All-America center Greg Oden, didn't play much in the summer league, either, missing several of Portland's games after getting his tonsils removed.
Dials actually stayed up and watched almost every Buckeye game last season on his computer (France is six hours ahead of the Eastern Time Zone) and was happy to see his team's success following his graduation.
"They were a little overmatched against Florida, but overall they had a great year," he said. "I didn't know a lot of the new guys, but I was really happy for the coaching staff. Those guys work so hard and they deserved the success."
He was also happy for another of his former coaches, Dan Gorski, who coached him with the Spartans and was recently hired at Liberty.
"Yeah, I definitely need to call and congratulate him on that," he said.
scalzo@vindy.com
Sunday, July 15, 2007
he signed a contract to return to the French league in August provided he doesn't get an NBA deal — although France...
