Jason Kidd made a huge step last year when he went straight from playing on the court to sitting on the sidelines as the head coach of the Brooklyn Nets. He tried to take things further this year by requesting to oversee basketball operations in addition to his coaching job.
According to the NY Post:
Kidd recently approached ownership with a series of demands, including the role of overseeing the Nets’ basketball operations department in addition to his head-coaching responsibilities. The source said Kidd didn’t want general manager Billy King to be dismissed, but wanted to be given a title and placed above him in the organizational hierarchy.
Ownership declined to grant Kidd that kind of power, which is rare for any coach in the league to have. The source said ownership felt Kidd wasn’t ready for that kind of responsibility after having only one year of coaching experience.
The Nets not only declined his request, they granted him permission to meet with the Milwaukee Bucks to possibly coach and oversee basketball operations in their organization. That duel position is rarely given out, currently Gregg Popovich (Spurs), Doc Rivers (Clippers) and Stan Van Gundy (recent Pistons hire) have that type of control and they are seasoned veterans. Kidd however has a very close relationship with new Bucks co-owner Marc Lasry.
Its unclear what role Kidd would play in Milwaukee but both coach Larry Drew and general manager John Hammond are under contract and were reportedly unaware that Kidd was interviewing for their jobs. Kidd isn’t angling to immediately take over as president and coach, sources said, but is intrigued with the higher-paying, lower-workload life of an top executive. His actions were reportedly fueled by the recent hirings of first-year head coaches, Derek Fisher and Steve Kerr. While Kidd’s deal with the Nets was for four-years, $10.5 million, Kerr and Fisher each got five-years, $25 million.
As for a possible return to the Nets? “The Russians are done with Kidd,” one high-ranking league source told Yahoo Sports on Saturday night. The Nets and Bucks are discussing compensation for Milwaukee hiring Kidd away, which will likely include second-round draft picks.
Possible replacements have already been mentioned and they include, Lionel Hollins, George Karl and Mark Jackson.
– Shaina Auxilly (@Shay_Marie)
