NBA

New Kidd in town leads 1st Nets practice

DURHAM, N.C. – As the Nets finished up their opening practice of the 2013-14 season Tuesday morning inside the gleaming men’s basketball practice facility at Duke University, there was a non-stop string of chatter coming from the court.

There was the expected stream of consciousness pouring out of the mouth of Kevin Garnett, who already has become the team’s vocal leader 24 hours into the new season. There was plenty of chatter from other players, too, including fellow newcomers Paul Pierce and Jason Terry, and from the team’s two lead assistants John Welch and Lawrence Frank – the de facto offensive and defensive coordinator, respectively – as they led drills.

One voice that wasn’t often heard was Jason Kidd’s. He would step in and make a point when he saw the need, or chat with a player on the side when he felt he needed a word. It was a setup that seemed to perfectly fit Kidd’s low-key personality, and the players seemed to buy into it as well.

“It looked good,” said Terry, who spent several years playing alongside Kidd in Dallas, including winning the 2011 title together, before adding with a smile, “It almost looked like they already rehearsed it.”

“It just looks genuine, it looks second-hand, second nature. Again, [Frank] is out there leading the drills and Jason comes in and makes his points and, boom, we break and get it done.”

Kidd’s first official practice as the team’s head coach was deemed a success by everyone involved, as you would expect on the opening day of training camp for any team, let alone one with the talent and expectations this Nets team carries. What stood out was the intensity and energy in the gym, a marked change for a team that last season often seemed to lack that kind of spark, to the point that Kidd called it a “vanilla” group after being hired this offseason.

“The energy was great today during practice,” said Deron Williams, who was limited in practice as he continues to recover from a sprained right ankle. “I don’t want to say it was night and day from last year, but it was just a different feeling.

“The energy was better, it was more intense … it’s just a better feeling.”

Tuesday’s practice came on the heels of a team dinner after the team arrived in Durham on Monday night following media day in Brooklyn. After dinner, the players and coaches gathered in a room and had a discussion about their goals for the coming season, a session in which Kidd said the players did most of the talking – and, not surprisingly, Garnett had one of the most powerful voices.

“Really, it was kind of a role reversal, where most of the players did the talking,” Kidd said. “I think just talking about what we want to achieve as a team. A lot of times coaches will talk, but this was a time for the coaches to listen and hear what the players have to say.”

With yet another milestone – his first practice – out of the way, Kidd was ready to get to work trying to mold the Nets into the potential championship contender he and his players aren’t shy of saying they expect it to be.

“It’s just about me being able to help the guys,” Kidd said. “When I see something as a coach, good or bad, I let the guys know, and today we were going in the right direction.”