Above: Terence Stansbury completed three seasons in the NBA then played internationally for 16 years. Photo courtesy DSMHoF.
By Chuck Durante
With a versatility that made him the leading scorer in Temple history, Delaware’s pioneering international star and a legendary dunk artist, Terence Stansbury fashioned a life in basketball unmatched among men who attended high school in the First State.
His spectacular performances in three Slam Dunk Contests reverberate four decades later, his 360-degree Statue of Liberty slam in Dallas is still shared in film and lore. His hops were foreshadowed when he won the New Castle County high jump as an 11th?grader. After a brilliant Newark High School career where he was Delaware player of the year and topped The Inquirer’s 1980 All-Area team, he chose Temple after courtship from University of Southern California. After receiving a 75-foot inbounds pass, his jack-in-the-box turnaround jumper slayed Penn and electrified a sold-out Palestra. The Atlantic Ten player of the year, he passed Guy Rodgers as Temple’s all-time leading scorer and was the 15th?player taken in the 1984 NBA draft.?
A regular for Indiana and Seattle for three years, he was injured before his fourth pro season. A call to a friend by Rollie Massimino landed Stansbury a job in Belgium. A year later, he joined Levallois and lifted the Paris-adjacent team into the elite. “Le Michael Jordan d’Europe,” headlined the magazine Maxi-Basket. His Temple coach Don Casey invited him back to play for the Los Angeles Clippers, but Stansbury, having immersed himself in French language and culture, found stability and celebrity in a basketball-savvy continent. After playing 16 years in top-level leagues, he coached in several countries.
The son of a record-setting Howard High School relay runner, Stansbury saw his two children distinguish themselves on the court: Tiffany, the top player at North Carolina State before her own 12-year pro career; and Solly, who played college ball at Richmond and now starts for his father’s former team at Levallois.
— Founded in 1976, the Delaware Sports Museum and Hall of Fame is located on the Wilmington Riverfront at 801 Shipyard Drive on the first base side of Frawley Stadium. Sports fans can tour the museum for free each Saturday from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. and for two hours before every Blue Rocks home game.
