As one of the NBA’s top distributors, Jason Kidd knows that when a teammate gets hot, it’s his job to get that player the ball.

On Monday night that teammate was Caron Butler and No. 2 showcased the unselfishness that makes him special by finding Butler time and again to help the Mavericks build an insurmountable third quarter lead.

J-Kidd got the dime on four of Butler’s six made field goals in the third as the Mavs cruised to a 101-91 victory over the Houston Rockets.

As the two developed a can’t miss rhythm, coach Rick Carlisle stopped calling plays and Jason put his own double-double on hold to take control of the offense. Mike Fisher and Michael Dugat of Dallas Basketball took notice:

"Had Jason Kidd put in one more basket, he would have added a third to the Dallas double-double club. Kidd finished with eight points and 11 assists. He was probably happy to see Aaron Brooks absent. But at the same time, the Rockets – who with guys like Shane Battier leading the way have a great understanding of the science of basketball – probably hate seeing Kidd active.

Example: Who do you think was in charge of orchestrating Butler’s big quarter and his big night?

"Kidd was doing a good job of calling the plays," Dirk said. "And if a guy (like Butler) is hot like that, you’ve got to milk it. So, it was definitely fun to watch."

Butler was thrilled and thankful that he has a player like Jason to get him the ball:

"(We’re) playing with the greatest point guard, one of the best ever," Butler said with high regard for his floor general."

Jason was a facilitator for the most part, but he started the game with some offense to get the Mavs rolling.

After a slow start in the opening quarter, in which both teams went the first two minutes without a bucket, J-Kidd hit a three at the nine-minute mark to put his team up 5-4. Later in the quarter, No. 2 helped his teammates find an offensive rhythm. He first found Dirk in the paint for the short jumper. Seconds later he hit DeShawn Stevenson in the corner for a triple to give Dallas the 16-12 lead.

Then came the play of the night. After Jason Terry took a shot from the free throw line that hit the front of the rim, the ball managed to find its way to No. 2 above the arc. J-Kidd scooped up the ball and tossed a beautiful no-look pass to Butler, who streaked the baseline and finished with a reverse lay-in.

Jason added two more points late in the first, when he used his size to post up on Rockets’ point guard Kyle Lowry and bank an easy jumper off the glass. No. 2 took a breather shortly thereafter and the game teetered back and forth for most of the second quarter as the lead changed hands 17 times.

But with two minutes remaining in the second the Mavs finally took control as J-Kidd made a nice bounce pass through the paint that Shawn Marion grabbed for a big slam to give Dallas the 51-44 lead. Dallas finished the second on a 10-1 run and led 52-45 at the break.

During the third, the Mavs pulled away thanks to an 18-8 run early. Jason continued his solid play and, to go along with eight third quarter assists, to four different players, J-Kidd hit another three at the nine-minute mark to give his team the 60-49 lead.

Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News, described the Mavs’ incendiary quarter:

"The third quarter was a thing of beauty for the Mavericks. They started with a 52-45 advantage, then hit 13 of 17 shots (76 percent) and outrebounded the Rockets 8-4. Only a 3-pointer by Brad Miller at the buzzer sawed the lead down to a dozen, and by the time the fourth quarter was half done, it was more than 20 points."

Dallas finished the 31-point quarter with a 12-point lead and the offensive explosion allowed Jason and his fellow starters to rest for the entire fourth quarter.

NEXT UP
After dishing out 11 assists in 26 minutes on Monday, Jason will be fresh and ready to go on Wednesday night as the Mavs look to continue their NBA-best six game win streak against the Minnesota Timberwolves.

The game is set to begin at 7:30 p.m. CST and can be seen on Fox Sports Southwest.

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