Jason Kidd
(Born 1973)
Hall of Fame Induction: 2018
Card Shown:
2014-15 Panini Flawless
Association Autographs
Position: PG
Height: 6’4″
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Jason Kidd starred in the NBA for nineteen seasons. He was a point guard who made those around him better. Kidd retired with the second most career assists (12,091) and steals (2,684), trailing only John Stockton in both of these important statistical categories. He also finished his career with the third most triple-doubles in NBA history (107) behind Oscar Robertson and his boyhood idol, Magic Johnson. Jason was a relentless worker, a student of the game, and a powerful athlete. Those skills would come in handy when he transitioned into coaching after his retirement as a player.
Awards and Honors
- In college, Jason played for Cal (University of California, Berkeley) and was named the Pac-10 Player of the Year and an NCAA AP All-America selection in 1994.
- Kidd (the second overall pick in the 1994 NBA Draft by the Dallas Mavericks) and Grant Hill (the third overall pick by the Detroit Pistons) shared NBA Rookie of the Year honors in 1994-95.
- Between 1996 and 2010, Jason was selected as an NBA All-Star ten times.
- Kidd led his teams to the playoffs in fourteen of his first sixteen years in the NBA but he had still not accomplished his ultimate goal of winning a championship. Jason kept working hard and tried to be patient during those years. His patience ultimately paid off in 2011 when he and Dirk Nowitzki led the Dallas Mavericks to the 2011 NBA Championship in six games over a Miami Heat that featured Shaquille O’Neal, Dwyane Wade, and Chris Bosh.
- Jason helped lead Team USA to two Olympic gold medals at the games in Sydney, Australia in 2000 and in Beijing, China in 2008. He retired from international competition with a perfect 56-0 record.
- During his storied career, Jason was named All-NBA First Team five times, All-NBA Second Team once, All-Defensive First Team four times, and All-Defensive Second Team five times.
Points of Interest
- Jason led the NBA in assists five times during his career, including a career-best 10.8 assists in 1998-99.
- One of Kidd’s nicknames early in his career was “Ason Kidd,” because he had no “J” (jumper or outside shot). He made only 27 percent of his three-pointers during his rookie season. However, with perseverance and work, Jason became a prolific three-point shooter and when he retired he trailed only Ray Allen and Reggie Miller for most threes made in a career. Jason averaged a very good career mark of 40 percent accuracy from behind the line.
- In 2001-2002, Jason led the New Jersey Nets to the NBA Finals where they lost to Kobe Bryant, Shaquille O’Neal and the Los Angeles Lakers in four games. Kidd came in second in the NBA Most Valuable Player voting that year, behind only Tim Duncan. The following year, in 2002-2003, the Nets again reached the NBA Finals. They were defeated in six games by David Robinson, Tony Parker, and Duncan.
- During his career, Kidd played for the Mavericks, Phoenix Suns, New Jersey Nets, and New York Knicks. He finished his career with averages of 12.6 points, 8.7 assists, and 6.3 rebounds per game.
- After his retirement, Jason served as the head coach of the Brooklyn Nets for one year (2013-14) and the Milwaukee Bucks for three years (2014-15 through 2017-18).
Statistics
Jason Kidd Statistics
provided by Basketball-Reference.com
Personal Autograph Interaction
Joshua and I got our Jason Kidd cards autographed at the Awards Gala on Friday night of the 2023 Hall of Fame Induction weekend. At that event, the incoming Hall of Famers receive their orange Hall of Fame jackets and their Hall of Fame rings. The event was about to start and Jason was an aisle over from us and not engaged in talking at the moment.
Joshua attempted to approach Kidd and was rebuffed by a security guard. I, on the other hand, totally oblivious to the presence of the security guard, leaned over and asked Jason if he would sign the card that Dirk had signed a few days before. He agreed and the security guard gave my son access as well. Jason ended up signing two cards for each of us. Mine (pictured below) are the 2013-14 Panini Titanium Game Gear Duals and the 2017-18 Donruss The Champ is Here cards. In my haste, on the dual auto, I reached into my pocket and pulled out my black sharpie instead of the blue one that I was expecting to use. Oh well! I still love the card and the black looks fine.
We ran into Jason again on Saturday when we were checking into our hotel and shared an elevator ride with him and his son. He was very personable and nice to both of us.
Thank you, Jason!
In-Person Autograph Photos
Jason signed these two cards for me at the 2023 Awards Gala.