There has been a lot of talk around the league about whether future Hall of Famer Jason Kidd would stay with the Mavericks or sign a contract in New York. First off, Kidd wanted to be closer to his children who live in New York, but the Knicks also offered a sound future on the court over the next years. More specifically, the franchise is dedicated to clear cap space in order to become a major player in the much anticipated free agent class next year, featuring players such as Dwayne Wade, LeBron James and Chris Bosh.

However, the Knicks were not able to outbid Marc Cuban and the Dallas Mavericks which ultimately led to Kidd giving a verbal agreement to sign a 3-year deal worth approximately $25 million. Despite receiving a vast amount of criticism after trading Devin Harris for Jason Kidd last year, the franchise still believes that Kidd will be irreplaceable for another try at becoming a championship contender. Last season, Jason Kidd’s veteran leadership was a key factor that helped the Mavericks to make it out of the first play-off round for the first time in three years. In 2008-09, the 36-year old point guard averaged 9.0 points, 8.7 assists, 6.2 rebounds and 2.0 steals in 81 games.

According to Mavericks owner Marc Cuban the re-signing of Jason Kidd would just be the first move Dallas plans to make in the busy month of July. The latest rumors are that the Texan franchise is working on a sign-and-trade deal that would bring Shawn Marion to Dallas in exchange for the expiring contract of Jerry Stackhouse and further assets. However, such a move would probably require a third team under the cap to facilitate the trade since there would be no advantage for Toronto compared to just renouncing Marion’s bird rights.

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