What do you know? The annual staredown between the Nets and Jason Kidd has begun.
Or is it a monthly staredown? Either way, it gives me a migraine.
Dare I say the Nets and Kidd have reached the point of no return? That’s how it looked last February, when the Lakers came calling but wouldn’t give up Andrew Bynum? That’s how it looked when the Nets rejected Kidd’s recent request for a one-year, $13 million contract extension. And that’s how it looked last month, when Kidd didn’t show up for a game after texting the trainer that he had a migraine.
It was time to trade the headache then, and it is beyond that time now for Nets president Rod Thorn.
Kidd’s agent, Jeff Schwartz, has once again asked Thorn to find a new home for his client. Thorn, who last year grudgingly considered such proposals, is now actively entertaining them. This with the Nets mired in a nine-game losing streak, punctuated by a deplorable 0-6 road trip during which the Nets resembled the Knicks at their worst this season, only with less effort.
Then Kidd told ESPN The Magazine’s Ric Bucher that, yes, once again, officially, he wants out.
“We tried to make this work,” Kidd said. “We’ve found out it doesn’t. It’s time for us all to move on.”
But where? Kidd used to want to play for a championship contender. Now that the Nets are in freefall, he simply wants to finish his career on a team that is competitive. The Mavericks, Lakers, Cavaliers, and Nuggets are most notable among playoff-contending teams in their need for an elite point guard. But with Kidd turning 35 in March, and with his max contract paying him nearly $22 million next season (when he turns 36), it will be difficult for Thorn to get what he wants – a good young player, an expiring contract, draft picks, and cash.
Thorn said Monday that he’s in no hurry to satisfy Kidd’s trade demand. We know this about Thorn: He’s too stubborn to be bullied into making a deal that will hurt the Nets for the long term. But he’s also had enough of Kidd’s passive-aggressive pouting. Something has to give, and I predict that it will before the Feb. 21 deadline.
The All-Star Game in New Orleans will be a frenzy of Kidd speculation. Nearly every GM in the league will be there, and with Kidd starting for the East and getting a chance to show what he can do with All-Star talent around him, the weekend showcase will be dominated by Kidd trade talk with the deadline only four days away.
It is time for Thorn to trade the headache and get the best deal he can. As Kidd said, it’s time for everybody to move on.
Comments (4)
Nice of J-Kidd to reveal this to the guys who cover his team on a daily basis instead of giving the scoop to the ESPN machine. All that sucking up to J-Kidd failed to pay off. Play coy to the slugs who work your beat and then give the gold to the rich.
I hope they trade him to the Clippers. Better yet, the Knicks.
Kidd saved this franchise. A buddy of mine wants him to be booed tonight. If not for Kidd, the Nets would have been playing their home ames in Kansas City a few years ago. Nets need to do what the Knicks didn't, knock it down and re-build it. Even if it means getting 50 cents on the dollar for Kidd and Vince.
I totally agree with Ken. Trade the headache. All he does is whine and act like a two year old who sits there and pouts. He is the problem with the team!! Give me Steve Nash any day, at least he can actually put quite a few points on the board to help a team win. All everyone talks about is his "triple doubles"...well if you can't score more than a whole 10 points (and most of the time he doesn't even get that) you are not helping your team win. I thought he was a POINT guard...doesn't that mean that you need to score points too????? I think the fans are finally realizing what the true Jason Kidd really looks like. You said it Bock, trade him to the Knicks!!!!
Any Nets fan who bashes Kidd obviously hopped the bandwagon when they became good and is completly ignorant of how terrible this franchise was before he came aboard... which is about 90% of them