Kidd took a lot of heat early in the year, with only some of it deserved. The Nets ran simplistic, isolation-heavy sets to start the season and their perimeter defense was among the worst in the league. Finger-pointing and anonymous criticisms ensued, and there were serious questions about if Kidd had made a mistake by making the immediate leap from player to coach.
But Kidd and the Nets quickly turned it around, going non-traditional with a funky mix of lineups to open up their offense. With Lawrence Frank demoted off the bench, players have said both publicly and privately that Kidd has a new, strengthened presence in practices and games. The “Fire Kidd” chants have been muted (at least temporarily), he’s loose enough to have fun with not wearing ties, while ensuring Kevin Garnett’s begrudging acceptance of Garnett’s new role as the team’s starting center. It remains to be seen if Kidd has a discernible impact on the struggling Deron Williams, but he’s certainly gotten a lot out of Shaun Livingston.
Kidd’s got a long way to go before you can call him the next Gregg Popovich, but at this point, he certainly doesn’t look like the next Kiki Vandeweghe.
Kidd took a lot of heat early in the year, with only some of it deserved. The Nets ran simplistic, isolation-heavy sets to start the season and their perimeter defense was among the worst in the league. Finger-pointing and anonymous criticisms ensued, and there were serious questions about if Kidd had made a mistake by making the immediate leap from player to coach.
