He’s been playing innocent for the last few weeks, but Jason Kidd has finally confirmed that he does indeed want to be traded.
The rumor mill says the Lakers, Mavs, Nuggets and Cavs are interested. In the video, Tim Legler is talking about a deal where the Mavs would send DeSagana Diop, Devean George and Jerry Stackhouse/Jason Terry, but that only adds up to salaries in the $11.1 to $12.8 million range, which doesn’t approach Kidd’s salary of $19.7 million. In most NBA trades, the salaries need to be within 20% in order for it to work under the rules of the salary cap. That deal is also rumored to include another Western Conference team, so the Nets may be getting more than those three. If the Mavs are able to acquire Kidd and only give up Diop, George and Stackhouse, it would be a coup.
If I’m running the Nets, I would try to pry Devin Harris away from the Mavs, or at the very least, Terry. The deal is rumored to include picks, but if we’re talking non-lottery teams, those late picks in the first round aren’t worth that much.
The Lakers were considering a deal for Kidd last season, but weren’t willing to give up Bynum when most “pundits” (including myself) thought they should. Now Bynum is a budding star, so the Lakers will certainly balk at any deal including their young center. They could offer up Lamar Odom and Kwame Brown, which would allow the Nets to shed some salary after this season. The Nets should try to get Jordan Farmar if possible. He has been extremely productive this season and should develop into a good starting point guard in the next couple of years.
The Cavs always come up when a star demands a trade because the thinking is that they are a very good player away from seriously contending. Kidd would give the Cavs a true point guard, but LeBron handles the ball so much, I wonder if Kidd’s talents would be wasted. Mike Brown would have to drastically alter the offense to utilize Kidd’s skills, but he (Brown) hasn’t proven to be very adept at making offensive adjustments. And whom would the Cavs give up? Does anyone want Larry Hughes and his $12 million salary? Drew Gooden and Anderson Varejao are possibilities up front, as is Zydrunas Ilgauskas. Daniel Gibson is their primary young bargaining chip in the backcourt.
The Nuggets are an interesting possibility because Kidd’s arrival would allow Allen Iverson to play exclusively at shooting guard. He’s another guy who has to have the ball to maximize his talents, but with Kidd running the show, the Nuggets would be pretty scary offensively. The problem is what the Nets would accept in return. Kenyon Martin? Doubtful. The injured Nene? Maybe. Marcus Camby is a distinct possibility, but does Denver want to trade away the reigning Defensive Player of the Year? Camby has a very affordable contract, which makes him that much more valuable.
Kidd wants to be traded to a contender, which means whatever draft picks the Nets can acquire are probably going to be late in the first round. However, it sounds as if getting out of New Jersey is his #1 priority.
The New York Post says that the Nets are going to have a tough time finding a suitable trade partner.
“They’re in a no-win situation,” said another GM. “No one out there is going to give them a piece to grow with. Maybe expiring contracts and draft picks, but the teams that will bid – say Dallas, Cleveland – don’t necessarily have that.”
It seems the best the Nets can hope for is a good, young prospect and/or a first round draft pick. They will also want to shed salary as quickly as possible so they can go about the business of rebuilding.
