As soon as Jason Kidd was fired by the Dallas Mavericks on May 19, Los Angeles Lakers fans began to speculate whether Kidd might be interested in a return to LA as an assistant, where he won a title in 2020.
But intel from ESPN's Shams Charania pretty much nipped that possibility in the bud. In discussing Kidd's firing on Wednesday, Charania revealed through his sources that Kidd supported the Mavs' decision to trade Luka Doncic.
Jason Kidd supported the Mavs' terrible choice to trade Luka Doncic
"Mavs sources do believe that [Kidd] had a level of support for that trade," Charania revealed.
With this info out in the open, fans will begin to understand why Luka will feel some type of way about Kidd from here on out. We know that Luka felt utterly betrayed by his trade from Dallas (for good reason), but we haven't always known who, beyond Nico Harrison (if anyone), actually supported the ludicrous idea.
This Kidd news changes things in that regard. If Kidd were on the Lakers' coaching staff moving forward, it would just create an awkward dynamic between Kidd and Luka that the Lakers do not need to bring into their locker room.
Luka Doncic-Jason Kidd relationship is likely fractured beyond repair
With some players, this whole Kidd situation might not be a big deal. But Doncic is a guy driven by his passions and emotions, not to mention a player who carries intense feelings of vengeance directed at the Mavericks after what went down. Inviting Kidd back to the Lakers while Luka is the franchise player in LA seems like it would just be an unnecessary distraction.
The Kidd-Doncic dynamic in Dallas lasted 3.5 seasons, which included an NBA Finals appearance in 2024. It's funny ... from the outside looking in, it always seemed like Kidd was Luka's greatest supporter, and Kidd's point guard background appeared to make him the perfect mentor to Luka as Doncic came into his own as the most dominant playmaker in the world.
But it sounds like front office politics poisoned Kidd in Dallas and convinced him that trading away Luka was a smart decision. When Harrison was thrown out of the organization, Kidd may have felt that he was safe, despite having supported Harrison's Luka decision.
But once Masai Ujiri took charge of basketball operations at the start of May, Kidd was gone with a couple of weeks, despite being signed with the Mavericks for another four years and over $40 million! Ujiri clealy isn't a big fan of Kidd.
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