Jason Kidd is going back to the NBA Finals.

The Dallas Mavericks secured their spot in the championship round on Wednesday night, with big buckets and bigger stops to complete another fourth quarter comeback and edge the Oklahoma City Thunder, 100-96.

It is Dallas’ first trip to the NBA Finals since 2006 and Jason’s first since he went as a New Jersey Net in back-to-back seasons in 2002 and 2003.


Jason Kidd and the Dallas Mavericks are going to the 2011 NBA Finals.

Just two days after falling behind be 15 in the fourth quarter and putting together a 17-2 run to get to overtime and eventually the victory, the Mavs did it again. Down by eight late in Game 5, Dallas reeled off a 17-6 run in the final five-and-a-half minutes for the series clinching win. The Mavericks are now a perfect 3-0 when they have the chance to close out a series.

Jason finished with 10 assists, a pair of points and a steal on Wednesday, but it was the last of his seven rebounds which will rank among his biggest plays of the series. It was the second time in as many games that J-Kidd came up with a clutch play in the waning moments. Brandon George of The Dallas Morning News described how it happened:

"Though it will likely go unnoticed for the most part, Jason Kidd’s offensive rebound with 16.4 seconds left off of Dirk Nowitzki’s missed jump shot was a key play in closing out Oklahoma City.

With the Mavericks ahead, 98-96, Kidd was able to pull in the rebound from the perimeter after Nowitzki’s shot clanged of the rim. Kidd then passed the ball to Nowitzki, who was fouled and knocked down two free throws to put the game out of reach."

It should comes as no surprise that No. 2 stepped up to grab seven boards in Game 5, two shy of the team-high shared by Dirk Nowitzki and Tyson Chandler. After all, it was Jason who, following Game 4, talked about how the Mavs needed to rebound better after losing the battle on the boards 55-33 that night in the overtime win. In backing up his words with actions, four of Jason’s seven rebounds came off the offensive glass, none bigger than the last one.

"Kidd’s rebound was huge," Mavericks center Brendan Haywood said. "It was one of the biggest plays of the game. It won’t be on any highlights, but it was very big."

Jason’s defense was also a huge factor in helping the Mavericks finish the series and Kevin Pelton of Basketball Prospectus said it’s time to give J-Kidd his due.

"Kidd and Marion were terrific at the defensive end, making life difficult for Durant. He finished with 23 points on as many shooting possessions. We probably haven’t given Kidd enough credit for what he did defensively in this series while matching up with two of the league’s best players, both of them nearly young enough to be his kids. Durant has five inches and even more length on Kidd, yet virtually never scored on him one-on-one following a switch."

After the game Jean Jacques Taylor of The Dallas Morning News wrote that though Jason’s numbers didn’t stick out in the series clinching win, his performance, and the little things he does best, leaped off the page:

"Jason Kidd, for as long as he has been playing basketball, has always made the little plays, the ones only coaches and teammates remember long after the game has ended.

He did it again Wednesday night — and that’s among the biggest reasons why the Dallas Mavericks are going to the NBA Finals for the second time in franchise history."

Taylor pointed to Jason’s late offensive rebound, as well as the pass to Dirk for the three that gave the Mavericks a 95-94 lead with 1:14 to go in the game as key in the Dallas comeback. Jason Terry told Taylor that the Mavericks have come to expect nothing less from No. 2:

"You can’t teach the stuff he does," Jason Terry said. "His game will never ever show up on the stat sheet. The loose balls he comes up with, the way he strips guys, the way he makes whatever play we need.

"When it’s the fourth quarter and he’s on the court, we just feel like we’re going to find a way to win."

To read Taylor’s entire piece, click here.

ALL THE RIGHT MOVES
Dirk Nowitzki noted after the game that the Mavs’ amazing play in the fourth quarter, when the pressure is on, is largely due to Jason.

"We’ve got Jason Kidd, who has obviously seen it all in this league, who is one of the great leaders," Nowitzki said in explaining why the Mavs thrive in crunch time. "He always seems to make the right play down the stretch."

But as per usual, it was also Jason who got the team’s scorers going early in the game and helped keep the score tight. He found Dirk, Tyson Chandler and Jason Terry in the opening minutes to help the Mavs stay even with the hot shooting Thunder. At the end of the first period, the Mavs trailed by just one point, 27-26.

Jason re-entered the game midway through the second with his team trailing, 44-40, and went about cutting the deficit by feeding Shawn Marion and Jason Terry on consecutive possessions.

According to J-Kidd, the play of Marion, who finished with 26 points in Game 5, was impressive throughout the series. But Jason noted that it was especially so in the last two games when you note that Marion did it while also guarding Oklahoma City’s premier player, Kevin Durant:

"Trix loves the challenge," Jason Kidd said. "That’s the first thing. Durant has led the league in scoring and he’s one of the best players in the world.

[Marion] looks for tendencies, but he’s athletic, too. He’s long and just tries to contest every shot. Durant is going to make some, but you just hope that he misses at the right time."

The Mavs trailed by three at halftime, but Jason recorded assists to Dirk and then Marion  to start the third quarter, helping his team keep pace with the Thunder. Jason then took matters into his own hands gliding to the basket for a layup that pulled Dallas to within just one point, 59-58.

Moments later, after pulling down a defensive board, No. 2 dished to Peja Stojakovic, who finished the play by nailing a triple from the right wing to give Dallas a 65-63 lead. Still, the Thunder refused to go away and by the end of the third quarter they led again, 76-72.

Oklahoma City increased that lead to seven points by the six-minute mark of the fourth. But it was at that point, similar to Game 4, that the Mavs began yet another magical run.

All postseason No. 2 has said that the Mavs don’t mind trailing in the fourth quarter as long as they’re in the game late. If they’re close enough to strike with six minutes left on the clock they believe they can do so. As has been the case in those situations, Jason noted that in Game 5, Dallas, a team full of veterans, never panicked:

"Everybody’s calm," said Kidd, who hit the game-winning 3-pointer in the overtime win over Oklahoma City and shut down All-NBA scorers Bryant, Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant in many clutch possessions. "The crowd might be a little uneasy, especially when we’re at home, but the guys don’t panic."

The 17-6 run by the calm Mavs over the final half of the fourth turned the tables on Oklahoma City and sent Dallas back to the NBA Finals. Bob Sturm of The Dallas Morning News described the incredible fourth-quarter performances of the Mavs this series.

"It was the grit and know-how to make the plays in the games final moments that won it for Dallas. They appeared superior in very few ways, honestly, for most of these 5 games. But, in the last 5 minutes of the 5 4th Quarters, the Mavericks outscored the Thunder by 24 points. And that, quite simply was the only difference there was.

Dallas knew how to make shots. How to get stops. How to make free throws. How to get a loose ball. Not all of them, just the ones that really mattered and determined the winners of these games.

It was veteran know-how versus youthful confusion. All of that extra energy did not help them deal with the composed execution of the guys who have been on this road before. There is a ton of resolve on the Mavericks roster."

NEXT UP
Jason and the Mavs will get some much needed rest prior to the NBA Finals, which, as No. 2 notes, is always a good thing:

"Any time you get rest this time of the year is a bonus," guard Jason Kidd, who at 38 years old needs the rest the most. "Not have to go back to Oklahoma City and close it out here was huge. It shows the team is going in the right direction."

The Mavs are still awaiting word on both their opponent and the timing of the next series. Should the Miami Heat defeat the Chicago Bulls tonight in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Finals, the NBA Finals will begin in Miami on Tuesday, May 31st. Should the Bulls extend the series with a win, the playoffs will start on Thursday in either Miami or Chicago.

Dirk Nowitzki said after the game that the outcome doesn’t matter much to the Mavs. Either way, they understand their work is far from done.

"We talked about it, obviously, after the game that this is a great moment. We can enjoy it for a day. But we got one of those conference championship trophies already. And it didn’t mean anything at the end," he said. "Whatever happens, happens. It’s not in our hands right now. We made it to the Finals, and we’re going to enjoy that for a day or two. It’s good to get these series finished off early. It was big for us to get J-Kidd rested after the last series, and we’re going to have a couple of extra days here again, and we’ll be ready for whoever goes through."

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