The NBA has seen some incredible point guards over the years, and Jason Kidd ranks right near the top — at least according to Stephen Jackson, who recently broke down what made Kidd such a deadly floor general on the latest episode of the All the Smoke podcast.
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The 57-year-old recalled the battles his San Antonio Spurs had with Kidd’s New Jersey Nets in the early 2000s, especially in the Finals. Co-host Matt Barnes asked Jackson to reflect on that time, particularly how “amazing” a player the now Hall of Fame point guard was.
“I hear about Magic Johnson — his passes and the way he was on the court,” Jackson began. You could tell that bringing up Magic was setting the stage for some serious J-Kidd praise. And Mr. Jackson did not disappoint.
“But I actually played with J-Kidd. I’ve never seen nothing like it. That’s actually the best passing point guard I’ve ever seen in my life,” he added.
It’s hard to argue. Kidd is ranked in the Top 3 all-time in assists, only behind the great John Stockton and Chris Paul. That shows you how good of company he’s in regards to passing.
Kidd later developed his game as a scorer, something that Jackson brought up in his continued praising of the all-time PG. “Then later in his career, he became a scorer with that sh**. When we played against him in the Finals, he was frying,” Jackson recalled.
“He was hitting jumpers and shit. His jumper had come around, and he was still fast. Definitely Top 5 point guard of all time in my mind.”
How good was J-Kidd in the early 2000s? Good enough to be a runner-up in the Most Valuable Player vote against Spurs legend Tim Duncan. That stat alone is still wild to Jackson.
“That year, he and Tim was neck in neck for the MVP vote. That’s the type of year he’s was having. Tim was having an unbelievable year, so for a point guard to be right there with Tim, that tells you what kind of year he was having,” SJ added.
Many players dream of having a career like Kidd’s. He changed games with his vision, toughness, and versatility — always doing a little bit of everything. J-Kidd put the New Jersey Nets on the map and eventually earned his long-awaited ring with Dallas.
He left everything on the court. And now, from the sidelines, he’s still shaping the game he helped define for so many years as a head coach.
