According to Marc Stein of DLLS, the Dallas Mavericks have elected to sign Jason Kidd to a contract extension. Over the last two summers, there were various reports that he had interest from the New York
Knicks and the Los Angeles Lakers.
Of course, he was under contract, so to join either team he would’ve had to have been traded or Dallas would have had to release him from his contract. Where this gets additionally funny is Jason Kidd already signed a contract extension with Dallas LAST summer.
That extension seemed to come directly as a result of the Laker interest, so the extension made sense. This one… doesn’t. Dallas had him under contract and he had no means of getting out of his contract. But Dallas decided to give him more money and years anyway, which is a testament to his negotiating skills (or that of his agent) and is a signal to just how dedicated Dallas is to their head coach.
Kidd boasts a 174-149 win-loss record with the Mavericks, along with a trip to the Finals in 2024 and Western Conference Finals in 2022. He’s clearly earned his keep in his short stint, winning more playoff series than Rick Carlisle’s entire tenure in Dallas. Kidd boasts a long history in Dallas, first as a player in the 90’s and again in the 2000’s where he helped lead Dallas to their sole NBA Championship.
The continued partnership makes sense, even if the extension is a bit funny. It proves the concept that you never know what you can get unless you ask. While the terms of the deal are not yet known, expect Kidd to be under contract with Dallas through the rest of the decade at least. We’ll know more about the deal in the coming weeks and months, but considering there is no salary cap for coaching, this is all for the good.
