Jason Kidd has announced through the Twitter that he has retired after 19 seasons in the NBA. Kidd spent this last year with the Knicks after playing the previous 18 seasons with the Mavericks, Suns, and Nets.
“My time in professional basketball has been an incredible journey, but one that must come to an end after 19 years,” said Kidd in a statement released on his official Twitter account.
Kidd averaged 12.6 point per game, 8.7 assists per game, and 6.3 rebounds per game throughout his NBA career. Four times Kidd led the league in assists per game, hitting his season high of averaging 10.8 per game in the 1998-1999 season with the Suns.
Kidd won the NBA Rookie of the Year in 1994-1995, sharing the award with Grant Hill who retired just a few days ago. He was traded to New Jersey after spending his first eight seasons in Dallas and Phoenix and quickly turned around the franchise. He led them to two NBA Finals appearances in his time there and is currently the fourth leading scorer in the franchise’s history.
After being traded back to the Mavericks in 2008, he would finally capture an NBA championship as part of the 2011 Mavericks team that beat the Heat in the finals. He signed with the Knicks before the 2012-2013 season and was a key contributor at times this season before hitting a cold stretch and struggling in the playoffs.
Kidd ends his career second all time in assists, second all time in steals, and third all time in 3 point field goals made. Kidd was selected to 10 All Star games and was twice an Olympic Gold Medalist. He will go down as one of the greatest point guards in NBA history, a player who left a legacy everywhere he went.
By Sam Jackson