Cuban To Meet Kidd

by Chris Alvino on June 30th, 2009 at 9:24 pm

ESPN.com is reporting that Mark Cuban is on his way to meet with Jason Kidd at the stroke of mid-night.  It sounds like Cuban is desperate to keep Kidd in Dallas.  Kidd is expected to meet with Donnie Walsh tomorrow regarding the possibility of playing in NY next season.

If Walsh makes an offer to Kidd, I think it should be for more than one year.  At the bargain MLE price, I am not sure where Walsh will find a better PG on such a cheap tab, so he should take advantage of the market to help avoid cap problems.  Kidd is not a $6 million player.  He is worth more than that to a good team, even at his age.

I am not against the idea of signing Kidd here, but I cannot help but overlook the awkwardness of the fit.  The Knicks are building for a team of the future.  How Kidd for 1-2 years will entice LBJ to come here next year is beyond me.  Let’s say Walsh gives Kidd a two year offer, that would mean that LBJ would play with the star PG for only one season.  If Walsh offers 3 years, that is only 2 years for LBJ to win with Kidd.  And if Kidd only comes for one year… well then I have no idea how that entices LBJ.  If all goes according to plan, he will play on the 2010-2011 team, not on next year’s team run by Kidd.

Kidd would be a much more valuable asset if Walsh were to find a way to snag Ricky Rubio.  Kidd can then teach the rookie PG lessons about the NBA game.  But without a young PG to groom, signing Kidd feels more like a gimmick than a move for the future success of this franchise.  Walsh does not strike me as a gimmicks kind of guy, so I am not worried about that.

As for what we can offer Kidd, money is not it.  As proud as I am to say this, New York is what Walsh has to offer Kidd.  The bright lights.  The big stage.  The chance to become a legend for helping to turn this franchise around.  The chance to be around his kids.  New York is the bargaining chip.  Not a championship.  Not a lucrative offer.

If Kidd decides to play elsewhere, or if Walsh decides to look elsewhere, I cannot blame either side.  Kidd to the Knicks is a bit awkward for both sides.  But if this happens, there could be big changes in the Garden next season.  A 2009-2010 Knicks team led by Kidd would have to be considered a playoff team.  That, to me at least, is a major step in the right direction.

About Chris Alvino

Chris Alvino grew up in Crestwood, NY. He graduated from Regis High School in 2005. There he played both basketball and baseball. Chris is currently a student at Boston College, where he practices with the varsity Women's Basketball Team (... seriously). Chris has been a Knicks' fan for years and can literally talk about them all day long, every day of the week. Chris enjoys writing on this blog and seeing what everyone out there has to say about it. View all posts by Chris Alvino →
  • BiggieSmalls

    Ken Berger over at CBS Sports (and formerly of Newsday) has his FA update 2.0 up..

    * David Lee’s days in New York are effectively over, said a source who believes that agent Mark Bartelstein will find the Knicks’ choking point and exceed it by a dollar in negotiations with Oklahoma City and/or Memphis. “It’s a tough loss for New York, but they don’t want to screw up their 2010 plan,” the person said. The money will be there for Lee, especially now that Boozer is off the market. The only reason for Lee to think twice is the added bang for the buck he’s gotten out of playing in New York. He won’t be a known commodity anymore in OKC or Memphis.

  • Jeff Cykiert

    I don’t think it is accurate to be analyzing moves/possible moves based on their ability to “lure LBJ.”

    If we can get Kidd for the MLE, than we will be paying 6 million dollars for a PG who still plays at a 10 million dollar level, especially considering his experience and leadership.

    I don’t see this happening for one year, why would Kidd do that? Why would we even do that? All it would do is take away from the growth of our team as a core group. If we do get him, i suspect it will be a long enough contract to finish his career, and yea, maybe he can be a championship PG. If you think about it, only paying him 6 mil would still leave room for and LBJ type player, plus another player close to the max. Imagine we somehow get rid of Curry, and we have a 2010 core of Kidd, LeBron, Bosh… That should do it…

    This is all pretty far fetched though. I think, by far, the most likely situation is that he remains in Dallas.

  • EQ1217

    If OKC wants Lee then we should try to s & t for Harden or Green

  • KBT1615

    He could be a mentor to Toney, or Rubio or make a excellent backcourt with Gay/ RIP Hamilton.

  • Chris Alvino

    Same. Or Portland.

  • Jeff Cykiert

    Why is rip called RIP hamilton. Is it actually supposed to mean R.I.P.? I noticed everybody capitalized all three letters, and it just seems wierd. Is it an acronym, or just a nick name.

    Rip Hamilton.