Following the most successful season of his career, culminating in his first NBA title, many wondered if Jason Kidd was ready to walk off into the sunset.

But the man himself felt so good that walking away wasn’t even a thought in his mind. On Friday he reported to Mavericks camp ready to begin his 18th season in the league and he doesn’t believe this will be the last one either.

"I would like to get to 20 years. Some individual goals are sitting there to maybe be reached. Maybe some not to be reached. We’ll see," he told ESPN Dallas. "But I would love to keep going. I was joking with Dirk that we could retire together. I would like to get to 20. As a kid, you just think about playing and if you can go past eight years, you’re like, ‘I’ve had a great career.’ Now it’s going on 18. So why stop now?"


Champ holdovers J-Kidd, Dirk and Shawn Marion are joined by Mavs newcomers Vince Carter and Lamar Odom on Media Day.

Jason relishes the chance to continue playing with a team he believes has every opportunity to win a second consecutive title. What they lost in Tyson Chandler, JJ Barea and DeShawn Stevenson, he believes they gain back in the acquisitions of Lamar Odom, Delonte West and Vince Carter, his former teammate in New Jersey.

"Our team is probably going to be a little different, but that’s the business of basketball," Kidd said. "That happens. But we still believe we can win. We’re going to work extremely hard and take pride in being a champion and trying to protect our championship."

The addition of Carter, a 13-year veteran of the NBA himself, is of particular note to No. 2, who played with Carter three and a half seasons in New Jersey.

"He’s a veteran, and I still believe he has some athletic ability left," Jason told the Dallas Morning News. "He stretches the defense because he can knock down the 3. He could definitely help us. And he’s a great guy. He definitely fits."

Carter said at Mavericks Media Day that he’s happy to reunite with his old running buddy and it should make his move to Big D easier:

"Coming to play with J is going to be fun," he said. "He makes the game easier for everyone. I’m a guy who likes to ask a lot of questions so I know what’s going on… I’ve bounced a couple things off of him. It helps my transition."

Odom could also be an x-factor for the champs. He has a championship pedigree, having won two championships in Los Angeles. He also happens to be one of the most versatile players in the game and can play anywhere from the point to the post. Coach Rick Carlisle told ESPN Dallas he is ready to make the moving pieces fit together.

"We’re going to be a very good team," Carlisle said while looking ahead to integrating the new faces. "We’re going to be a dangerous team. Our goal is to mold into, again, a championship team."

The depth will be especially important this season as the Mavs, like the rest of the NBA, face a grueling stretch of 66 games in four months as a result of the shortened NBA season.

"There’s no room to play catch-up because we play 34 games in the first half of the season and after the All-Star break we play 32," Jason told D210 News. "32 games is going to go by fast. If you’re behind, trying to play catch-up playing three in a row in March, you’ve definitely got your backs against the wall. It’s important to get off to a good start."

Carlisle has already said that he will take it somewhat easy on some of the more veteran Mavericks in training camp because there is no reason to tax players like Jason, who know the system already.

"We’re not going to kill him in training camp," Carlisle said of J-Kidd. "We’re going to make sure we have him for 66 games."

But the Mavs have depth behind Jason too. That’s where West and Roddy Beaubois step in. The 23-year-old Beaubois is back after dealing with a foot injury all of last season. Jason said Beaubois is in a position to seize an opportunity after the departure of Barea.

"We’re not looking for him to be J.J.," Jason told the Dallas Morning News. "We’re looking for Roddy to be Roddy. We know he’s going to make mistakes. But make mistakes and learn from them. My biggest hope for him is to stay healthy so he can go out there and showcase his talents and be the player we all think he can be."

And no matter how grueling the schedule or the changes the Mavs may face, J-Kidd is just really happy to get back on the floor with a chance to bring another title to Dallas.

"It’s great to be back to defend our title and play the game that we love," he said. "I feel great, so if I can survive this sprint of 66 games we’ll see how I feel come next year. You never know what happens in this league. You just play it out and hopefully my talent will stay at a respectable level that I can help a team out.

"You know I would love to stay here and finish it out."

NEXT UP
The Mavericks open the season on Christmas Day against the Heat at American Airlines Center, but first they play two exhibition games with the Oklahoma City Thunder. The first of those games is this Sunday at AAC with a 6:30 p.m. CST tip. The returning meeting is two nights later in OKC at 7 p.m. CST.

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