Dejah Terrell Heads to Iceland After Standout Season in Turkey

Berks Catholic, Albright College, and California University (Pa.) basketball great Dejah Terrell enjoyed a successful first professional season in Turkey, where she averaged a double-double and developed a liking for lamb.

"A signature dish? It would have to be lamb," Terrell said about the favorite new food she tried overseas. "I was really big on the way they cooked their lamb."

As the 25-year-old enters Year 2 of her professional career, her next worldly bucket list items to experience are the Northern Lights and Blue Lagoon.

Dejah Terrell with Turgutlu Belediyesi. (Photo courtesy of Elite Basketball Agents)

In her first pro season, the 6-1 forward averaged 15.4 points, 12.5 rebounds, 1.2 assists, and 1.2 steals per game for Turgutlu Belediyesi in the Turkish Women’s Basketball League (TKBL), which is the second tier of Turkey’s professional women’s basketball system.

"I was actually very proud of myself this year," Terrell said. "Turkey has shown me how good of a player I really am."

Her performance and dedication to basketball will allow her to experience new parts of the world and continue playing the sport she loves this year. She's headed to Iceland soon after signing with Keflavík, which has won the most league titles in the country's highest level of competition.

"In this basketball world, you want to work to be at the top," Terrell said. "I'm now in the first division in Iceland. I feel very honored and blessed because the fact that they want me to play with them and they are a winning team tells me that they see a winner in me."

Keflavík, which plays in the Úrvalsdeild kvenna (Women's Premier League in English) and is based out of the town of Reykjanesbær, has won a league-high 17 national titles, the latest coming in 2017.

Terrell said her goals remain the same: continue developing her game, win championships, and embrace every opportunity to travel and grow. So what could that look like in the future?

"I'm willing to go anywhere," she said. "I want to travel the world. So if I can get to turn back, even back to Turkey and play first division, that'll be cool."

While the WNBA isn’t at the forefront of her mind, she hasn’t ruled it out.

"The WNBA has never been one of my goals, but if that phone rings, I will definitely pick it up," she said. "Right now I enjoy my overseas life."

Dejah Terrell goes up for a shot. (Photo courtesy of Elite Basketball Agents)

In regard to her on-the-court play, she's focused on improving her 3-point percentage (25.7-percent last year) and ball handling.

Terrell's been back in the Berks County area working out before she leaves for her next overseas journey, many times working out with current or recent local high school girls basketball players who look up to her.

"It feels really good and they honestly keep me sharp," Terrell said. "But it feels great to have them looking up to me. I never really had a role model that I am today. And that's why I try to be the best role model possible."

While Terrell said she didn't really look up to anyone when she was a younger player, she called out former Berks Catholic teammate Devon Merritt as a mentor. As the game continues to grow, women's basketball role models for the youth are becoming more and more visible.

Fittingly former Reading High player Yamilex Rodriguez will be continuing her career at Cal U, where Terrell was once a dominant force in the PSAC. For Terrell, it's another reminder of the impact she has left on the Berks girls basketball scene.

Terrell is just beginning her professional basketball journey, but already has an idea of what she might do in her post-playing career.

"Once that ball stops dribbling for me, I definitely want to get into the coaching world," she said. "Or I was thinking about being a sideline commentator."

But first, Terrell has a season to play and the Blue Lagoon and Northern Lights to see.