DURHAM, N.C. — The first battle of Jason Kidd’s coaching career has become his struggle to rein in Kevin Garnett.
Long considered to be one of the NBA’s most prideful players, Garnett has taken exception to the fact Kidd wants to try to implement a plan to limit his minutes periodically and rest him during the regular season, in order to have him ready for the playoffs next spring.
“I think Jason forgot last year,” Garnett said when asked if Kidd going through a similar experience as a player last season helped their mutual understanding of the situation.
Garnett then added, “He got amnesia,” as he stood up and ended the interview, drawing laughs.
Kidd later was apprised of Garnett’s comments and asked if he played too much last season, when Kidd started more than 40 games for the Knicks before fading down the stretch, including shooting 0-for-17 over his final 10 games in the playoffs.
“As a player, my mentality is that I only take it one day at a time,” Kidd said. “I can’t look at it as a bigger picture because I’m trying to win that one ballgame. For me, I tried to win and do whatever it took, and we had some injuries.
“Maybe I was out there a little bit too long, but at the end of the day, we won, and we had a great run, but we had an Indiana team that was better.”
It’s that “one day at a time” mentality Kidd had as a player he is hoping to keep Garnett from falling into, particularly as he approaches 50,000 regular- season minutes for his career — a mark Kidd himself eclipsed last season before retiring.
“Whenever you get over 15 years, the years don’t matter,” Kidd said. “You just take it day-by-day, and he’s been great.
“For me and him, he respects me and I respect him. I just sat in that seat. So, for me, to get him to the finish line is my goal.”
There was no update on the injury front for the Nets, with Deron Williams (sprained right ankle) and Jason Terry (offseason left knee surgery) both limited in practice, while Toko Shengelia (offseason left knee surgery) remains out.
Terry said after Tuesday’s practice he was targeting Thursday for his return to full practice, while Williams — who is still expected to be a few days away, at least, from fully practicing — said he is doing everything he can to stay engaged while he’s stuck on the sidelines.
“I’m still watching,” Williams said. “I’m still doing the quizzes, the pop quizzes that [Kidd] throws out there. I’m a quick learner, so I won’t be behind.”