page_title: Jason Kidd
section_title: Return to the Mavericks (2008–2012)
hierarchical_section_title: Jason Kidd / Playing career / Return to the Mavericks (2008–2012)
caption_attribution_description: Jason Kidd is an American basketball player, pictured here with the Dallas Mavericks.
context_page_description: Jason Frederick Kidd is an American professional basketball coach and former player who is an assistant coach for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association. Previously a point guard in the NBA, Kidd was a 10-time NBA All-Star, a five-time All-NBA First Team member, and a nine-time NBA All-Defensive Team member. He won an NBA Championship in 2011 as a member of the Dallas Mavericks, and was a two-time Olympic Gold Medal winner during his pro career, as part of Team USA in 2000 and 2008. He was inducted as a player into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.
  Kidd played college basketball for the California Golden Bears and was drafted second overall by the Dallas Mavericks in the first round of the 1994 NBA draft. He was named co-NBA Rookie of the Year in his first season with the Mavericks, along with Grant Hill. Then, from 1996 to 2001, Kidd played for the Phoenix Suns and later for the New Jersey Nets from 2001 to 2008. He led the Nets to two consecutive NBA Finals appearances in 2002 and 2003. In the middle of the 2007–08 season, Kidd was traded back to Dallas.
context_section_description: On February 13, 2008, the Dallas Mavericks and New Jersey Nets reached an agreement on a trade to send Kidd and Malik Allen to Dallas for Devin Harris, Devean George, Jerry Stackhouse, DeSagana Diop, Maurice Ager, two first-round drafts picks (in 2008 and 2010), and $3 million, but the trade fell through when George invoked his (Early) Bird rights, as was stipulated in his contract at the time. The trade was retooled, with Trenton Hassell replacing George, and Keith Van Horn, who had agreed to come out of retirement, replacing Stackhouse, because NBA officials informed the Mavericks that if Stackhouse were to be included in the deal, he could not re-sign with the team if the Nets chose to buy out his contract. Antoine Wright was also added to the retooled trade proposal (the two teams originally agreed on a separate deal that would have sent Wright to the Mavericks for a 2008 second-round pick, but were ultimately able include him in the Kidd deal). On February 19, 2008, Kidd was traded to the Mavericks along with Allen and Wright for Van Horn (via a sign and trade deal), Harris, Diop, Hassell, Ager, $3 million, and first round picks in 2008 and 2010.
  The Mavericks hoped that Kidd would provide leadership to the team that for years had been labelled as weak mentally and help Dallas and its franchise-player Dirk Nowitzki to win their first ever NBA Championship. Although already a member of the Mavericks, Kidd started for the Eastern Conference in the 2008 NBA All-Star Game, as he had already been named as a starter prior to the trade. The Mavericks made a strong playoff push following the trade, but despite a 51–31 record, they were only able to secure the seventh seed in the highly competitive Western Conference. In the playoffs, they faced Chris Paul's New Orleans Hornets, and were eliminated in five games in the first round.
  The following 2008–09 season saw Kidd and the Mavericks stumble out to a rocky start, losing eight out of the first 15 games; however, the team finished the season strong to earn the sixth seed in the playoffs with a 50–32 record. Kidd finished the season ranked third in the league in steals with 2.0 per game, his best average in six years. In the playoffs, the Mavericks upset the San Antonio Spurs, with Kidd leading the team in assists in all but one game; the Mavericks reached the Conference Semifinals for the first time since 2006. Kidd's season ended there as the Mavs lost to the Denver Nuggets in five games.
  On July 5, 2009, Kidd verbally committed to re-signing with the Mavericks after being pursued heavily by the New York Knicks. The three-year deal reportedly was worth more than $25 million, all of it fully guaranteed. In the first year of Kidd's new contract in the 2009–10 season the Mavericks finished second in the Western Conference with a 55–27 record during the regular season. However, the season ended with another disappointment as the Mavericks lost in six games to the San Antonio Spurs in the first round of the 2010 NBA Playoffs. It was rumored that Kidd had gone through a flu just before the series began which might have affected his physical conditions. He did not speak to reporters after Games 5 and 6 and skipped the team's final meeting.
  Kidd won the NBA championship with the Dallas Mavericks on June 12, 2011, defeating NBA All-Stars LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, and Chris Bosh and the Miami Heat. After appearing and losing in two different NBA finals, it was the first and only championship in his career. Despite a mid-season injury to Dirk Nowitzki, and a season-ending surgery to their starting small forward Caron Butler, the 2010–11 season turned out to be the best for the Mavs in the Kidd's era as they finished the regular season with a 57–25 record. On February 4, Kidd hit a 3-pointer with 2.5 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter to give the Mavs a win in Boston over the Celtics, extending their winning streak to seven games.
  Kidd sparked the Mavericks' impressive run with a total of 42 points in the first two playoff games against the Portland Trail Blazers. Dallas won the
caption: Kidd during his second tenure as a Maverick
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