NBA

Serby’s Sunday Q & A with.. Jason Kidd

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New Brooklyn Nets coach Jason Kidd took a timeout for some Q&A with Post columnist Steve Serby.

Q: What won’t you tolerate as coach of the Brooklyn Nets?

A: Being late. Being on time is being early, kind of. If it’s 10 o’clock practice, just don’t show up at 9:55, then that means you’re late. Understanding that we were starting at 10, so you should be prepared. That’s something I’ve always had a problem with.

Q: Tom Coughlin has a 10-minute rule with the Giants.

A: Yeah. … I’m not trying to take from Tom, but say practice is at 10, there’s an early group at 9:30, so if you’re not involved in that 9:30 group, 9:45 you should be dressed and ready to go.

Q: Can you be a disciplinarian when you have to be?

A: I’m gonna learn (chuckle).

Q: But would that be easy for you?

A: Yeah. … This is a job. You have to be responsible. I’m not gonna be a hardass, but if I have to fine someone for not following the structure or the rules, then that’s what I have to do.

Q: Of all the coaches you played for, who do you think you’ll resemble the most?

A: [Rick] Carlisle and [Danny] Ainge, a mix of those two.

Q: Why Carlisle?

A: He’s prepared, everything was time-oriented, and he had a great feel.

Q: When you played with the Nets, you had a rule that if a teammate was on the floor …

A: To pick him up.

Q: Will you have that rule now?

A: Well, yeah (chuckle). Because I think whenever someone is on the floor who’s your teammate, you should always help him out. That shows that you care. And that’s just respect, that look, you’re down, I’m gonna pick you up. You don’t have to waste any energy trying to get up, you got guys here to help you get up.

Q: Having worked for Mavericks owner Mark Cuban, how does that prepare you for Nets owner Mikhail Prokhorov?

A: Both are competitors. In business, they want to win, and this is a business. Cuban waited for some time, he thought it would come easier, or faster, but he won a championship, and I know that’s what they want here, and so I’m excited that he’s given me this opportunity.

Q: During the interview process, did your DUI come up?

A: Yeah we talked about it.

Q: And what did you say about it?

A: First of all, it was a mistake, and we’ve all made mistakes. We learn from ’em, and we have to be responsible. But it’s a legal thing that’s still pending and we’ll get to it when it comes.

Q: How hungry are you to win a championship?

A: Winning that championship [in 2011 with the Mavericks], it took some time. Patience is also I think a key in this business, and I talk about San Antonio. If they would have broken up the team after they lost to Memphis [in the 2011 first round] after having the best record in the playoffs, would they be here today? So, they had patience, and that’s something that hopefully we can have here in Brooklyn. But our owner wants to win now, so I gotta find a way for us to do that.

Q: Now meaning next season?

A: Why wait! Everybody says you have a window, but I don’t believe in that window. I was late in my career when I won a championship, as much as I thought I would win one three, four years into the league. But you had the likes of Michael Jordan, and [Shaquille O’Neal], and Kobe [Bryant]. … If you can get there, you have to take full advantage of it.

Q: So you’re ready to take over the town from the Knicks?

A: I think it’s a great competition to have with your rival in New York, and so I think it’s a great thing for the city, and I think hopefully we can nudge them and be on top. But they have a lot of history over there, and hopefully we can have the same.

Q: What was your style as a point guard?

A: I was just a guy that wanted to set the table. You look at Magic [Johnson], you look at [John] Stockton, I thought that was who I tried to emulate. Set the table, and if the shot presented itself late in the game, don’t be afraid to take it.

Q: How does Deron Williams’ style differ from yours?

A: He shoots the ball a little bit better than I did or Stockton or Magic, so he’s different in that way because he can flat out shoot it with the best of ’em, but also, he’s a guy who can set the table.

Q: Chris Paul?

A: He’s the Isiah [Thomas]-type guard. He sets the table as well as anybody, but I think the point guard position right now is as rich, as deep talent-wise, from older all the way down to youth. It’s a special position right now.

Q: Tony Parker?

A: Underrated. He’s a winner.

Q: The one trait you had that was the most important to your success was your ability to see things before they happened.

A: I would agree with that. It’s like watching a movie if you kinda can fast-forward and see what happens, that’s the way I played the game. I tried to fast-forward everything. Sometimes it worked. There were some nights that it was like, “He needs to push the pause button or just slow it down (chuckle).”

Q: More often than not it worked.

A: Yeah, because I tried to get in the head of my teammates, and understand what they’re thinking, so that only gave me a leg up on the defender.

Q: How did the diary you began keeping at the end of your career help you as a player and how will it help you as a coach?

A: It was just more of notes of how you would do different things. If I was a coach, what would I do in this setting? Would I burn the timeout with 2 seconds left if that’s my last timeout and I know I need to advance the ball? Do I burn the 20 or do I take the full? Just trying to understand the different components of what a coach has to really think and be spontaneous with.

Q: A quote at the end of your Nets playing days from Rod Thorn: “I don’t think Jason reveals himself to too many people.”

A; That’s true. I don’t.

Q: Why is that?

A: I’m a private guy. … I’m not very exciting. I’m not a comedian.

Q: You’ve got a good sense of humor.

A: I can be, but people take it as I’m being serious, so I don’t know if that’s good or bad (smile).

Q: You’re a private guy, but now …

A: That changes.

Q: But you can’t change.

A: No, I won’t change. I don’t mind saying “hi” and stuff, but the biggest thing is I always try to be respectful, and that’s one of my dad’s big things is be respectful, no matter what time it is.

Q: Thoughts on your former teammate Jason Collins coming out.

A: I think it’s great. It takes a big person to go that. He is a great friend and was a great teammate, and I’m just happy for him, because I know it had to be tough for him to just keep that a secret for so long.

Q: You were very close with your father.

A: As a kid growing up, he provided for three kids, he had one job — he worked for 30-plus years with TWA. He made sure if I had soccer in the morning, I had basketball in the afternoon, he drove me to both. He was always there and as I got older, college, he would go to all the games, home and away. And then my rookie season, he would meet me on the road in different cities. So we were very close. And it’s not a day that I don’t think about him due to my kids and what he would do I. Different situations.

Q: How proud would he have been to see you introduced as Brooklyn Nets coach?

A: Draft night, or being drafted, and then seeing this take place would probably be the two highlights. As much as the [NBA] championship or the gold medals, being able to fulfill your dream for being a player and now … being a coach and being on the other side.

Q: Are you more like him or more like your mom?

A: That’s a good question. There’s probably a split.

Q: How do you think you’re like him?

A: I’m more observant, quiet. … I try to listen and watch. If it’s a janitor or a stranger, he would talk to ’em and invite them over for dinner or whatever. He was never a judgmental person in the sense of, no matter where they were class-wise, he would always try to befriend ’em.

Q: Best piece of advice he gave you?

A: He gave me a lot. I think the biggest thing is to slow down and try to enjoy it instead of trying to go at warp speed and try to do everything. He said, “You can’t make everybody happy, and that’s something that you always try to do, but there’s always gonna be someone who doesn’t want to see you succeed and you can’t take it personal.”

Q: Your dad was black and your mom was white. Did you hear any racial overtones at all?

A: I will have to give credit to the Bay area being diverse in that sense. … Now there were probably whispers still, but I think my parents kinda — I don’t want to say sheltered me in that sense — but they protected me from that. … If there was any, I never heard it. Kids might have teased me a little bit, being an Oreo or whatever it may be, but that was just kids being kids.

Q: And you just laughed it off?

A: Oh yeah, I just laughed it off ’cause I didn’t know any better.

Q: Describe your 3-year-old son Chance.

A: He’s a baby — he’s only 3 but he looks like he’s 5 or 6. And so publicly, he is maybe addressed as a kid, but we all know he’s just a baby. But he doesn’t want to be called baby. He always reminds us that he’s a big boy. But his personality is more like his mom. And his dad— he’s very competitive. He’s a great kid, he wants to do everything Dad does, in the sense of golf.

Q: He doesn’t play golf yet?

A: Yeah, he swings the golf club, and that’s something that we’re gonna do this summer is try to get him with a teacher. Dad tries to teach, it doesn’t go well, with golf, ’cause I’m trying to learn.

Q: What’s your handicap?

A: It’s a six.

Q: So you want a Tiger Kidd, so to speak.

A: Sitting here, I would love for him to be successful if he plays sports, at that level.

Q: Did you ever think of going on the Tour?

A: No. … Senior Tour, no, ’cause then it’s Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods, who would want to be on the Senior Tour then (laugh)?

Q: Your daughter Noah Grace is 1.

A: I think she’s gonna give Chance a run for his money. She started walking at 10 months, 10, 11 months, she skipped crawling. It was just amazing to see that she picked up, like, “I guess I’m supposed to be doing what Chance is doing.” She had a very strong personality, but I think she’s the sweetest thing, and I’m just hoping that she’s everything like her mom.

Q: How did you propose to Porschla?

A: It was in Miami. I was playing golf, I had picked up the engagement ring, we were in the hotel room, and she’s, if I recall, standing or sitting on the bed. And I brought over a box and told her to close her eyes, and I asked her, “Will she marry me?” And then (chuckle), jokingly she’s like, “I thought you were supposed to get on one knee,” so then I had to get on a knee and I did it again.

Q: What are you better at, a no-look pass or changing a diaper?

A: I can change diapers. … I don’t mind changing diapers. … I will have to say it’s a tie.

Q: What were pickup games with Gary Payton and Brian Shaw like?

A: They’re everything a young kid would want, or a young player, to learn from two older players that were in the NBA. So I was very fortunate to be at the right place at the right time playing against Gary, who was known as a trash talker and was very competitive, and Brian Shaw was very competitive, so I learned how to be tough quickly. I got a lot of respect from those two because they thought I would never come back after some of the losses or the torture they did to me (smile).

Q: Where were those games?

A: In Oakland. Skyline High School, St. Joseph, the high school that I went to. We played a lot of pickup games there [at] Cal. … You had the Warriors, Tim Hardaway, Chris Mullin. … Donnie [Walsh] invited me up to their minicamps in September when the guys all were in town, and I got to play with Chris and Tim and Mitch [Richmond].

Q: Did you ever think about skipping college?

A: No, ’cause it wasn’t the thing to do. Going to college, if you were really good, you left after your sophomore year. Thought about leaving after my freshman year.

Q: Why didn’t you?

A: They just felt that it wasn’t a good time to do it, in the sense of you want to be a lottery pick, so that was one of the issues.

Q: Your decision to go to Cal-Berkeley surprised your parents.

A: Yeah, ’cause they thought I was probably going to Kansas, because they were the only other school to come into the house.

Q: Why did you pick Cal?

A: I wanted to stay close to home.

Q: Describe your high school coach, Frank LaPorte.

A: He’s the cause of all this (smile). In eighth grade, going into high school, he saw myself playing point guard, when most high school players who were 6-2, 6-3 played center. And he had the vision that would be my natural position.

Q: Describe your first Cal coach, Lou Campanelli.

A: He was tough. He was a straight shooter, and I guess being the lead guy, sometimes you have to burden the negativity that comes with he got fired midway through that year.

Q: He was tough on you?

A: He was tough on the whole team, so I guess I got the label of him being fired.

Q: That’s happened to you more than once.

A: Yeah. … That’s what happens if you’re the player that everybody looks to to solve problems.

Q: Former Mavericks coach Dick Motta.

A: As a rookie, as a kid, not knowing what I was getting myself into, he prepared me. We would go to dinner and he would have some great stories and talk about the league and what to look for and what not to get into. He was really not just a coach but a good friend.

Q: Former Suns coach Danny Ainge.

A: He’s one of the players’ coaches that you want to play for, ’cause it’s just about go out and play and do what you do best. He’s so positive whenever you go to him. If there was an example of someone saying, “Hey, he dribbles too much,” he says, “Well, let’s look at the positive: He can give you 20 points a night.” And you were like, “OK, you’re right.” He solved the problem right then and there ’cause he would never let the negativity creep in and say, “You know what? He does dribble too much.”

Q: Are you likely to be that way?

A: I would love to pick all the good from the coaches I’ve played for. But I don’t see myself standing for 48 minutes. I would like to sit and enjoy and watch the guys do what they do best. Sometimes I think coaches can get in the way of the people who buy those nice seats in the front row.

Q: So describe how you see your coaching style.

A: I would be a younger [Gregg Popovich]. And I’m not trying to say I’m Pop … he’ll stand if he has to. But a lot of times he sits there and enjoys the game with his staff. … If I could ever follow in that category, that would be an honor.

Q: So it’s safe to say you won’t be a younger Scott Skiles.

A: Uh no (smile).

Q: Is there anything you want to say about Scott Skiles?

A: He is a great X-and-O’s coach. And he’s a competitor, he loves to compete.

Q: Coach Krzyzewski

A: He’s right there with Pop as the best at what they do.

Q: Why?

A: Communication. He just blew me away from the first day that he talked to the [2008 USA Olympic] team … ’cause he’s human. I mean, he uses words that we all use. But on TV, you don’t really get to see his personality, and you get to really see it behind closed doors.

Q: Former New Jersey Nets coach Byron Scott.

A: Look, he’s had a lot of success.

Q: He was another one they said you ran out.

A: That’s because I was the head of the ship, I guess, in a sense I was the player making the most money. … I just happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time — I didn’t run him out. When you deal with these corporations, it’s not the player who decides, it’s management.

Q: Gary Mack.

A: Oh that was a life coach in Phoenix. It was a very good mental coach for me. I had him for three years.

Q: How did he help?

A: Just helping break things down, and not looking at the end of the world or kinda like the negativity. Try to look at things more in a positive way.

Q: On the basketball court and off?

A: Both.

Q: Knicks coach Mike Woodson.

A: Coach Woodson was a great X-and-O guy. He understood the team. He’s a great communicator.

Q: Former Nets coach Lawrence Frank.

A: The pit bull, a bulldog (smile). He’s a grinder. He’s a guy that is gonna pay attention to every detail, small or big, and so I would definitely take a lot from him.

Q: Did you go to the Black Hole as a Raiders fan?

A: We are in the black hole (laugh). It’s funny, ’cause I grew up with Art Shell’s son, so as a kid growing up I went to the locker room, went to the games. … I was so scared of his dad, man, his dad was **** huge **** !

Q : Did you meet Al Davis?

A: I met Al, yes. He was a maverick. I was sad and upset at Al when he took ‘em to L.A., but I was still always a Raider fan.

Q: How’s your wife’s vegetable lasagna?

A: Very good.

Q: Three dinner guests?

A: Bill Walsh; Pop, ’cause me and Pop are on about the same line of answering questions — they’re real short, that would be a quick dinner; John Wooden.

Q: What would you ask Wooden?

A: Give me the truth about coaching stars. It’s easy to sell it to Bill Walton or Kareem [Abdul-Jabbar]. He won a championship, so you have to listen. Yes, that happens. But where does it stop when that star player comes in and is like, “I don’t care what they did, I’m gonna do it my way.” Did he ever have that encounter?

Q: What would you want people to say about Jason Kidd’s Brooklyn Nets, after they watch your team play?

A: They play hard. They’re a feisty group, and it’s a ticket that I would love to buy for years to come because they’re a lot of fun to watch.