Reports: Jason Kidd the leading candidate for Nets head coach
Jason Kidd is reportedly the leading candidate for the Nets' head coaching job. (Nathaniel S. Butler/Getty Images)
The Brooklyn Nets are expected to finalize a decision this week on their next head coach and Jason Kidd is reportedly the favorite to land the job, according to a report Tuesday morning from Fred Kerber of the New York Post.
Kidd, 40, met with Nets General Manager Billy King on Monday and multiple sources say there's mutual interest to make the recently retired 10-time All-Star the replacement to former interim head coach P.J. Carlesimo. According to the Post report:
Kidd is viewed as the leading candidate for the job and met with GM Billy King yesterday to pitch his position. It was a “good meeting,” according to someone close to the situation. “Jason really believes he is ready for the next step, to be a head coach,” another person familiar with Kidd’s thinking said. “He wants it.” And all indications are the Nets want him.
Later Tuesday, Yahoo! Sports' Adrian Wojnarowski cited sources saying Kidd was a "strong frontrunner."
https://twitter.com/WojYahooNBA/status/344561485432881153
According to Chris Broussard of ESPN, Kidd impressed the Nets on Monday and exhibited "supreme confidence."
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Before helping the Dallas Mavericks to an NBA championship in 2011, Kidd had spent seven years with the Nets, then in New Jersey, from 2001-08, leading the team to consecutive NBA Finals appearances in '02 and '03. During his 2012 free agency, he had been in talks with the Nets to be the backup to Deron Wiliams, but ultimately decided on signing with the New York Knicks.
The Nets are also expected to meet with Pacers associate head coach Brian Shaw on Wednesday before making a decision.
