The man has accomplished virtually everything imaginable on the basketball court.
He’s an NBA champion, but on this day, he wants to talk about the Texas Rangers’ World Series championship.
He’s a 10-time All-Star and six-time first team All-NBA player, but is reminiscing about the lunch he had one day with Ken Griffey Jr. and Alex Rodriguez.
He’s a two-time Olympic gold medal winner, but is looking forward to the upcoming World Baseball Classic.
He is considered one of the greatest players in basketball history, but worships his three favorite Oakland A’s heroes: Vida Blue, Rickey Henderson and Dave Stewart.
He was a teammate in the Olympics with Kobe Bryant, LeBron James and Kevin Garnett, but still is in awe of taking batting practice one afternoon with Mark McGwire when the St. Louis Cardinals came to Phoenix.
He has been the head coach for three NBA franchises, but reveres Baseball Hall of Fame manager Tony LaRussa.
He’s in the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame, but was thrilled to see Vallejo, California, native CC Sabathia inducted last summer into Baseball’s Hall of Fame.
He is NBA Hall of Famer Jason Kidd, head coach of the Dallas Mavericks.
He’s on the phone Wednesday afternoon, hours before the Mavericks played the Denver Nuggets at home, and is talking all things baseball.
Yes, one of the greatest point guards in NBA history is a fanatical baseball fan.
He can tell you all about Randy Johnson’s Cy Young seasons, Barry Bonds’ home runs and Henderson’s stolen bases.
He was a baseball player himself, right up until college when he snubbed powers like Kentucky and Kansas to enroll at Cal-Berkeley, where he grew up, largely because he was promised he could play basketball and baseball.
“I grew up loving baseball,’’ said Kidd, a catcher and outfielder. “I love it. That’s one of the reasons I came to Cal, because they said I could play baseball after basketball season. I never got the opportunity, though. When I was working out with the guys in basketball, they advised me to pass on baseball in case I got hurt.
“It’s one of the few times I listened.’’
Kidd became a star at Cal, was drafted with the No. 2 pick by the Mavericks, was co-rookie of the year with Grant Hill, and became a superstar in the NBA.
Certainly, he knew he made the right choice picking basketball over baseball, but never lost his passion for baseball.
He is now launching JK Select Baseball, a nationwide youth baseball initiative under the umbrella of the Jason Kidd Foundation.
The program is designed to help create opportunities for kids to receive the best instruction for baseball while receiving mentorship and guidance, whether they want to pursue sports or other careers. Kidd hopes that the baseball initiative builds off the success of the JK Select Girls Basketball program, which has produced more than 45 NCAA Division I athletes.
“Watching the young ladies play basketball, I started wondering if I should participate in youth baseball,’ Kidd said. “I started talking to my wife and others who were in the baseball world. I thought if I could help in women’s youth basketball, I can help in youth baseball. This conversation started getting traction.’’
The baseball initiative will have a three-tiered model for athletes from 7 to 18 years old, emphasizing skill development and education. It will begin in the Dallas area, with hopes of expanding to Washington, California and Pennsylvania.
“I’m in a position to give back and with youth sports,’’ Kidd said, “and sometimes we forget how important coaches are. A lot of us were blessed to have good coaches to help us go where we want to go. That helps create not just athletes, but lawyers and doctors and teachers. If the coaches are better, our youth will be better.’’
Kidd, who played travel baseball himself − although those trips never went further than two hours and not two time zones − also has been reacquainted with youth baseball through his 15-year-old son, Chance. He’s a 6-foot-4, 225-pound catcher who has been drawing attention. He has been invited to MLB’s Dream Series this weekend in Tempe, Arizona, a program designed to help develop minority pitchers and catchers.
“I love watching baseball, it’s just such a great game,’’ Kidd said. “It’s a game of failure. How do you deal with failure? And learning how to deal with failure helps you in all phases of life.’’
Kidd, 52, marvels at the athletes who have been able to have success at both sports. He raves about Kenny Lofton, who led the University of Arizona to the Final Four in 1988, and became a six-time All-Star center fielder who played in the 1995 World Series with Cleveland. He teases Chris Young, the Texas Rangers’ president of baseball operations, saying he should have gone to the NBA. Young was an All-Ivy League center for Princeton’s basketball team before becoming an All-Star pitcher. Sabathia and Jimmy Rollins, who grew up in Oakland, were fabulous multi-sports athletes.
“Growing up in the Bay Area, we were rich in athletes that can play multiple sports,’’ Kidd said. “I’m hoping with our program, we can help kids do whatever they choose. If they don’t want to play sports, helping them become doctors and lawyers and teachers would be great, too.
“I just want to give them the opportunity to grow, not just as players, but as people.’’
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