As he worked his way into a regular season rhythm, Jason Kidd made a big impact in the Dallas Mavericks’ 109-105 overtime win over the Chicago Bulls on Friday night.

No. 2 registered eight assists, out-dishing his Chicago counterpart, Derrick Rose, 2:1 in 12 less minutes. J-Kidd also pulled down four rebounds, and three assists in 25 minutes.

As his preseason minutes go up, No. 2 has said he’d be ok with playing fewer minutes this season to let the Mavericks use some of their depth, but he’s not sure that will happen.

Jason has averaged over 35 minutes per game every year since his rookie season and even at age 37 that doesn’t appear to be changing. He’s averaging 20.2 minutes per game in the preseason but he’s seen his minutes rise steadily in each game.

"I would love to have my minutes go down," he told the Dallas Morning News. "But they haven’t. The big thing is to just be prepared. I just try to take care of my body."

Mavericks Head Coach Rick Carlisle knows that since Jason does take such premium care of himself, the extended minutes are nothing the guard can’t handle, as he told Adam Fluck of Bulls’ Blog:

"Jason Kidd is one of the guys that have defied Father Time because he takes such great care of himself," Carlisle said. "He’s got some unusual gifts and he’s got a great intellectual curiosity and aptitude for the game. It’s allowed him to play at an extremely high level for an extremely long period of time, which is not easy."

BLOSSIMING ROSE
Jason’s Friday matchup with Derrick Rose of the Bulls gave No. 2 the chance to see firsthand what Rose learned from his time with Team USA this summer.

For the first part of the summer with USA Basketball, J-Kidd was working with Rose. Jason was a special instructor for the national team during camp in Las Vegas after retiring from international basketball with a perfect record. So far, Rose is perfect as a starter too. Jason could tell that Rose was bonding well with his USA teammates, a feeling he’s very familar with.

"I think it’s a brotherhood in the sense you want to push each other when you’re going against one another," Jason said. "It’s a friendly battle. You want to win, but at the same time you want to push each other to get better. I think that during the summertime when you have that opportunity to go against the best in the world in practice, it can only bring your game up to another level. And I think this summer D-Rose has done that."

Jason considers Rose among the finest point guards in the league and has been impressed with how the Bulls’ point has matured in just two seasons in the NBA.

"I think he has all the tools to be a great player in this league," Kidd said Friday following the Dallas Mavericks’ pre-game practice at the United Center. "He understands the game, you know, he’s a competitor. He’s athletic, he gets to the basket, he can shoot, finds the open guy. So he has all the tools to be a great point guard in this league. I am a big fan of DRose. He works extremely hard. I am always watching him and seeing what he’s doing."

For more from Jason on Derrick Rose, from the Chicago Tribune, click here.

MAVS PULL OUT THEIR ANTLERS
As basketball season approaches, baseball fever is still lingering in Dallas with the Texas Rangers just one win away from the World Series with a 3-1 American League Championship Series lead over the New York Yankees.

Many Mavericks players are supporting the Rangers and the team taped a video message for their Texas brethren last week, but unlike many of his teammates, Jason’s allegiances are divided, as he told Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News before the series.

Jason Kidd is another Maverick with torn allegiance. He played in New Jersey for a good chunk of his career and has a good relationship with several Yankees, Derek Jeter included.

"It’ll be a good series,” Kidd said. "I think it’ll go seven games. I’ll leave it at that.”

NEXT UP
The Mavs have only two exhibition games left before this season tips off next week and they play their final preseason road game tonight when they’re in Orlando to take on the Magic.

Tip-off is scheduled for at 6 p.m. CST and you catch the action on locally on KTXA and nationally on NBA TV.

RELATED ARTICLES
Jason Kidd would like reduced minutes but isn’t counting on it (Dallas News, Oct. 15, 2010) http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/spt/basketball/mavs/stories/101510dnspomavslede.25b2d29.html
Jason Kidd would love a little more time off (Pro Basketball Talk, Oct. 15, 2010) http://probasketballtalk.nbcsports.com/2010/10/15/jason-kidd-would-love-a-little-more-time-off-thank-you-very-much/
Chandler: "Rose really grew up this summer" (Bulls Blog, Oct. 15, 2010)
http://blogs.bulls.com/2010/10/chandler-rose-really-grew-up-this-summer/
Jason Kidd" I’m a big fan of D-Rose (Chicago Tribune, October 15, 2010)
http://www.chicagobreakingsports.com/2010/10/jason-kidd-im-a-big-fan-of-drose.html
Mavs don antlers for Rangers (NBA.com, October 17, 2010)
http://hangtime.blogs.nba.com/2010/10/17/mavs-don-antlers-for-rangers/
Mavs consensus: Rangers will prevail (The Dallas Morning News, October 15, 2010)
http://mavsblog.dallasnews.com/archives/2010/10/mavs-consensus-rangers-will-prevail.html