So much for the notion of a quiet Knicks offseason.
One day after the Knicks were jilted by Steve Nash, they have reportedly landed the other big veteran point guard on this year's free agent market. According to a report from Mark Stein of ESPN, Jason Kidd will be joining the Knicks for the next three years.
Although Kidd's name came up in various places when Nash decided to hitch his wagon to Kobe Bryant, the news is still quite surprising. Thursday started with widespread reports that Kidd would be heading back to Dallas, something that fit with everything he's said about his preferred team for the future and the Knicks were being linked with Raymond Felton.
Here's the place where we remind everyone that no deal can officially take place until July 11, but there's been nothing to the contrary about Kidd to this point. Assuming it happens, the Knicks got the veteran counterpart for Jeremy Lin, whose offer from the Rockets or anyone else will almost certainly be matched.
UPDATE: Jeremy Lin Accepts Rockets Offer: Reports
It's important to remember that this isn't the Kidd who took the Nets to the finals, but it isn't that far off from the Kidd who started as point guard when Tyson Chandler and the Mavericks won the title last year. He can still distribute the ball, is better defensively than Nash and has actually become a more efficient shooter over the years.
The caveat to that is that he's more efficient because he takes and makes more threes. He still shoots at a percentage that only J.R. Smith could love, but the bigger return on investment pays off.
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With Smith, Carmelo Anthony and Amar'e Stoudemire in town, the good news is that Kidd shouldn't have to shoot so much. The prospect of him working with Stoudemire, whose greatest success has come with point guards looking to give up the ball, is especially intriguing as part of a larger effort to configure lineups that maximize output while minimizing conflicting styles.
Kidd played just under 29 minutes per game last season and he should probably play less with Lin in town. That could boost his effectiveness on a nightly basis, although you probably shouldn't etch any Knicks rotations in stone at this point.
The three years and the money (reportedly $9 million) aren't ideal for a 39-year-old, but Kidd helps the team and alleviates a big concern about the backcourt. We'd say the Knicks were done with big ticket shopping, but we're done making guesses in that department.
Josh Alper is a writer living in New York City. You can follow him on Twitter and he is also a contributor to Pro Football Talk.
