TERENCE DIALS Lessons learned The Ohio State University standout has a sociology degree and court smarts that he hopes will take him to the pros

By JOE SCALZO
VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF
HEN TERENCE DIALS WAS A student-athlete at Boardman High School, basketball coach Dan Gorski would hold mandatory workouts on Saturday mornings.
"I don't think he knew how serious I was about them," Gorski said. "He told me, 'Coach, I don't have a ride.' And I was like, 'That's OK, Terence, I'll pick you up.' "
The first Saturday, when he got to Dials' apartment at 7:30 a.m., Gorski rang the doorbell. There was no answer. So, at 7:40, he rang the doorbell of every apartment in the building.
"So Terence put his head out of the window and said, 'Coach, don't ring the doorbell anymore. I'll be down,' " Gorski said. "Then, when he went out and ran with the team, he was the last one in. He'd make me run out there to get him and then he'd sprint it in just to bust my chops."
But Dials learned. The next Saturday, he was on the porch at 7:30 waiting for Gorski. A week later, Gorski was running late and Dials was walking down the street looking for him.
Work ethic remained
"That's when I knew we had him converted," Gorski said.
That work ethic never wore off. Of course, it took a while for Dials to show his true potential.
Dials had an up-and-down career at Boardman. He struggled with a stress fracture his sophomore year, had a terrific junior year and missed most of his senior year after having knee surgery the summer before. Then-Ohio State coach Jim O'Brien didn't care about the knee injury; he just knew he wanted Dials.
"A lot of schools would have backed off," Gorski said. "They didn't."
And the Buckeyes were better for it. A few weeks ago, Dials was named Big Ten player of the year after leading Ohio State to the outright league title, a runner-up finish in the Big Ten tournament and an NCAA tournament berth.
"I think some of the individual awards came with the team success," said Dials, who was at Boardman High this week after graduating from Ohio State with a sociology degree last Sunday. "I had similar stats last year, but we didn't win as much. When the team started winning, I think people took notice."
Hopes for NBA career
Dials, a 6-foot-9 forward-center, averaged 16.3 points and 8.4 rebounds per game this season. He's hoping to become the first Boardman grad to make it to the NBA and plans to spend the next few months getting in shape for the draft.
"I want to be in the best shape of my life for the pre-draft camp [in early June]," said Dials, the son of Terence Dials Sr. and Judith Kimbrough, "and I'll be working out with NBA teams and hiring an agent and all that stuff. It's pretty nerve-wracking.
"I just want to have success in the next stage of my life. I've had success in high school and college and hopefully I can make it to the NBA and take care of my family," he said.
Although the Mahoning Valley has produced plenty of top football and baseball players, Dials is one of the rare basketball talents to come out of the area.
"The Mahoning Valley is a football area," he said. "I was in the barbershop the other day and we were talking about [Missouri quarterback] Brad Smith who played at Chaney and how he's an NFL hopeful and how our careers are in a similar place.
"It's a great feeling to be in this situation, but the main thing people need to realize is that it starts in the classroom. A lot of people in Youngstown have talent but they don't have the grades."
Spartans' coach proud
After four stellar years at Ohio State, Dials has both. And his Boardman homecoming brought a lot of smiles this week.
"We're proud of him, but the No. 1 thing we're proud of is that he graduated last Sunday with a degree in hand," said Gorski. "A lot of the teachers were really excited to see him [Tuesday] because a lot of people here helped him and they shared in his success.
"It's been very rewarding."
scalzo@vindy.com