Last of the Kidd/Spurs conversation for the season.
Kidd still craving le; Mavs guard brings guile, shooting
Kirk Bohls
SAN ANTONIO — Some six years and the possibility of two NBA les with San Antonio ago, Jason Kidd turned down the Spurs.
On Monday night, he turned them out.
He's not as explosive as he once was, but his four three-pointers, guile on the court and veteran's savvy helped the Dallas Mavericks eliminate the overmatched Spurs in just five games of their Western Conference first-round playoff series.
His teammates certainly relish playing with him. Backup point guard J.J. Barea said he's idolized Kidd forever. He wore a Kidd jersey during his college days at Northeastern and still has it at his family home in Puerto Rico.
Forward Josh Howard can remember being in middle school and watching Kidd's every move.
"But don't tell him," Howard said. "I'm playing with a Hall of Famer. Actually, with two of them with him and Dirk (Nowitzki)."
It could have all been so different. But for a change of heart, Kidd — and not Tony Parker — could have been handing out passes to Tim Duncan since the 2002-03 season.
At the time, the Spurs were somewhat disenchanted with their own precocious Frenchman without much of a perimeter game. Enough so that they handed the reins to Speedy Claxton in the fourth and deciding quarter of the Finals-clinching win over Kidd's New Jersey Nets.
As the point guard of the Nets and a cornerstone of that Eastern Conference franchise, Kidd had been actively courted by the Spurs, who had salivated over him for years.
Kidd did grant coach Gregg Popovich and general manager R.C. Buford a summer audience, but many considered it nothing more than a courtesy call intended to give the guard more leverage — and eventually a longer contract — with the Nets. Kidd's wife also nixed the move, and New Jersey landed big man Alonzo Mourning to cement the deal to keep Kidd in the Northeast, although that move didn't work out.
And so, Kidd stayed put.
The Spurs, meanwhile, put up two more banners without him, one in 2005 and again in 2007.
"If I had come, I might have had two championships," Kidd said in the visitors' locker room in San Antonio after knocking out the Spurs. "When I made the decision, I felt I had a great opportunity.
"Then, (the Nets) broke up the team, and the Spurs went their own way."
And Kidd his.
Along the way of a decorated 14-year career have come the third-most assists and seventh-most steals in NBA history, a pair of Olympic gold medals and two trips to the NBA Finals. But no rings.
It's what drives him still. That and a $21.4 million salary, the third-highest in the league after Boston's Kevin Garnett and Detroit's Allen Iverson.
He is unsigned beyond this season and hopes to play for three or four more seasons, but he remains a critical part of a Mavericks team that has almost $69 million spoken for among nine current players. He's also someone Mark Cuban probably doesn't want to discard. Kidd may not be the central spoke of this club — Nowitzki, Howard and Jason Terry are the top scorers — but it certainly wouldn't travel as far without him.
"I don't have to carry the load," Kidd said. "I've had my time."
Once considered a very poor shooter, he's drastically improved to the point he topped the 40 percent mark from behind the arc for the first time. "He's one of the best in the business at running a team," Terry said. "As far as lining it up and setting up, I'll take his three-ball over anybody's."
At 36, Kidd's defense has dropped off somewhat from the days when he was a seven-time first- or second-team pick for the NBA's all-defense squad, but he not's without guile on the floor. That could be royally tested in a matchup of super point guards if Chauncey Billup's Denver Nuggets advance to meet Dallas. Billups had been guilty of only three turnovers through four playoff games, the same number Kidd's had in five.
Dallas remains somewhat of a mystery team in terms of its capabilities this postseason.
The Mavs caught fire after the All-Star break, improved from the eighth to the sixth seed in the final two weeks and have lost just one of their past 18 home games.
"Jason's playing his best basketball for us," Nowitzki said. "The game seems more natural to him this year."
Traded from the Nets at midseason a year ago, Kidd struggled under coach Avery Johnson's controlled, half-court game. Many think Johnson lost his team and especially Nowitzki when he kept Kidd on the bench for the closing seconds of a tight game against the Spurs. Johnson was fired two weeks after the season ended.
Kidd hasn't always been considered coach-friendly, credited (or blamed) for running off Byron Scott from New Jersey before the Mavs dumped Johnson. Some think Kidd and current Mavs coach Rick Carlisle aren't especially close either.
Who knows if he's really a coach-killer, but it's clear he's rejuvenated a Mavericks team busting with offensive weapons.
It's not a particularly strong defensive-minded team, but the Mavs know what's at stake. Why, there was Kidd sprawled on the floor late in Tuesday's game, going for a loose ball.
"He'd better go lay down the next two days," Howard said. "And lots of fluids."
He'll need them. The Mavs dropped all four games against the Nuggets — their likely opponent in the next round — but three of the losses were by two or three points, and Howard and Kidd both missed one or two of those meetings. Nowitzki calls the Nuggets "phenomenal, probably even better than the Lakers."
For now, that's just how Kidd and the Mavs like it.
"Nobody's talking about us," Kidd said. "We haven't done anything yet. We've taken one little baby step. If we won the championship, we'd still be under the radar. Somebody would put an asterisk by it. But we're not done yet."
Not like the Spurs, who are done.
Everyone craves the elusive NBA ring. I just really don't believe it's in the cards for Kidd, though.
It doesn't take away from what he's done, but I don't think his team can go very far given what talent awaits them with the Nuggets, Lakers and/or Cavs. Kidd missed out on 2 Championships, and Tony has many more years left and he's only now beginning to peak. It was a good decision for the Spurs.
Chris Bosh is already thinking about coming back to Texas
In fact, Kirk Bohls is Chris Bosh
Kidd was shooting out of his mind against us. His bricks will catch up with him, they always do.
Kudos to Kidd for improving his 3-point shot. He was pretty money this series.
Just admit that you took the larger amount of guaranteed $. No shame in that.
Yeah, except he's 40% on the year from three.It's not like it's a small sample size.
Jason Kidd can forget it!!
LE? HAHHAHHA yeah right, neither SA nor Dallas was good enough near good enough to get on this year (Manu hurt and all), he can forget his le nor getting Past LA if they pass Denver! If some miracle happens and they make the Finals Cleveland will eat them up like they did this year already, it's a no win situation. That ring stays elusive for him.
Yes, you're right - he's a 3pt specialist FFS.Yeah, except he's 40% on the year from three.
His career FG is just 40%. Maybe he should just shoot 3's from here on out.
This is even more lurid than the four gots.
He's getting up there in age and unless he ends up in L.A or Cleveland...I dont see him getting one.
You're gonna see it in June, this year.
He was stupid for not coming to Spurs, now he wont get a ring, there is no way tha mavs can get past the Lakers or beat Cavs in finals.
Denver's going to drop you like a pimp drops a ho that's holding back money.
It's funny how many Mavs fans I talk to that seem to think they are going to beat Denver. They beat us and suddenly morph into Jordan's Bulls in their own mind. I've already got 20 bucks on it with one at my work and I'll probably pick up a couple of more side bets from delusional fans.
Cha-ching.
Not really...he's been doing it all season...41% in regular season and 43.5% in rd 1.
Can't give him set shots from the 3 pt line...
Not sure who you're talking to, but no...don't think so.
I can't believe how much we owe to Kidd's money grubbing and Joumana feeling she would have more success with her blossoming acting career by staying on the east coast.
Thanks Joumana for keeping that wannabe outta SA i saidd!!
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