If Dallas wins the title, it will undoubtedly be one of the big winners of these playoffs. Because Jason Kidd has often been criticized since he took charge of the Mavericks in 2021, particularly by local fans…
However, while the Lakers seemed to be targeting him to replace Darvin Ham, management did not hesitate to extend him. It was just after qualifying for the conference semi-finals, thanks to the victory against the Clippers. Since then, the Mavericks have eliminated the Thunder then the Wolves, to be able to challenge Boston in the Finals.
“Everyone will now change their minds or their tone, or say that I caused everything”the coach now laughs to Yahoo! Sports. “My job is to build something. Everyone is in the moment. But it doesn't work that way. Winning franchises aren't built overnight. »
In this sense, Jason Kidd appreciates all the more the extension offered during the first round.
Go back down to get back up better?
“And for Nico (Harrison, the GM) and Patrick (Dumont, the owner), it meant an extension before we even got past the first round. Knowing that they believe in what I can do and have seen the impact I've had on the guys… It's really a vote of confidence. I truly believed I was making the right choice. If you look at our team, it has improved. We all got better. »
Jason Kidd thus repeats that he himself progressed as a coach alongside Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving, but also by becoming an assistant with the Lakers under Frank Vogel.
With Los Angeles, he won the 2020 title in the “bubble”, relaunching himself after a strange start to his coaching career, with a stint on the immediate bench in Brooklyn following his retirement as a player, a standoff with the Nets leaders who took him to Milwaukee, and a dismissal by the Bucks during his fourth season, for failing to explode the group led by Giannis Antetokounmpo.
Having fallen to the bottom of the ladder, the Hall of Famer climbed the ladder again… thanks to the humility rediscovered along the way.
“We like the role of the underdog, and we are”he repeats as the 2024 Finals approach, ensuring that he does not, however, take this run in the playoffs as personal revenge on his detractors. “Boston has been there before. We're just a group of guys, as some people say, who just got together and are going to play on the playground. It’s cool to see this group come together in such a short time and to believe in it.”
