BASKETBALL No Kidd-ing: Point guard chooses Nets

After a courtship from San Antonio, Jason Kidd chose to re-sign with New Jersey.
By JOHN ROWE
THE RECORD
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. -- Free agency was everything Jason Kidd expected it would be. And then some.
"It wasn't as easy as I thought," Kidd said. "I'm happy it's over with."
If he's happy, imagine Rod Thorn's elation. The president and general manager of the Nets has been exhaling for the nearly two weeks since his best player told him he wasn't going anywhere. Kidd's signing of his six-year, $103 million contract at a news conference Thursday was merely a photo op, but Thorn was all smiles.
"As the song goes, it's been a long and winding road," said Thorn.
The first turn was Kidd's detour to San Antonio, where the Spurs tried to convince him that he would be better off playing for them than for the team they beat in the NBA Finals. Then there were the reports that Kidd, as a condition of re-signing with the Nets, demanded that his coach, Byron Scott, be fired. Kidd and Scott, who hasn't been signed to an extension as the final year of his contract approaches, reiterated Thursday that the reports were erroneous.
An emotional process
Plus there was the anxiety of Kidd's decision day, July 10. After Kidd called Thorn in the morning and told him he was staying in New Jersey, he had his agent, Jeff Schwartz, call the Nets' executive midday to tell him to hold on, that Kidd wasn't ready to commit.
"I wanted to make sure I wasn't rushing," said Kidd, who conferred with Alonzo Mourning, the free agent he had recruited to the Nets.
By that night, Kidd was convinced, and telephoned Thorn with the news.
The news spread quickly after Kidd called several teammates to inform them he wasn't going anywhere. There was an even better reception in the point guard's household. Kidd's wife, Joumana, tried to remain neutral during the process, but then admitted to her husband that New Jersey would have been her choice, and T.J., their 4-year-old son who has been featured on television almost as much as his famous father, didn't want to relocate.
"He likes his school, he likes his friends, and he likes his golf instructor," Kidd said. "It's hard to find a good golf instructor for a 4-year-old."
Top point guard in league?
All kidding aside, point guards with Kidd's talents are hard to find. The trade with Phoenix that brought him to New Jersey two years ago has turned around the Nets. After years of being ridiculed, they have reached two consecutive Finals with Kidd. Thorn was not being overdramatic when he said that it was imperative for the franchise to re-sign Kidd.
"He's one of the best players in the NBA," said Thorn.
That's why the Nets celebrated with a coronation-like news conference. After a video of Kidd's highlights was shown, Kidd, his wife, and son were introduced by team public relations director Gary Sussman as "the first family of basketball in New Jersey." After they walked under a string of balloons to the podium, Thorn presented Joumana with flowers, and Scott, with an ear-to-ear smile, shook the hands of Kidd and his son.
"Jason is the pulse and heart of the franchise," said Scott. "It all starts with him."