I’d like to take this opportunity to pay tribute to one of the great basketballers of his generation, Jason Kidd, who announced his retirement from the game last week. After 19 years in the NBA, we have seen the last clever steal, the last sneaky rebound, the last incisive assist from a man who specialised in these small accomplishments like no one else in his era. He’ll be inducted without question into the NBA Hall of Fame at the very first opportunity, which is no less than his contributions to the game deserve.

You see, in an age of individualist expression and superstar egos, Jason Kidd was always a team player before anything else. He has his share of issues off the court, not the least of which a messy divorce and an even messier music career, but on the court he was the most consistent point guard of his generation, Steve Nash notwithstanding. Only John Stockton has more career assists and steals. Kidd is third all time, behind Magic Johnson and Oscar Robertson, in career triple doubles (and second in playoff TDs). Plus he is third all time in three pointers made as well. But all Jason Kidd ever cared about was winning and being a good teammate.

Kidd is a former rookie of the year, and a ten time all-star. His numbers speak for themselves. But when asked what of his legacy, he declared his proudest moments to be his two Olympic championships, his NBA championship and, not winning, but sharing that rookie of the year award with George Hill. You just don’t see that kind of humility and selflessness very often these days and even less so from the very best players. It is rare that a player these days is revered so unanimously while averaging just over 12 points a game for his career. Although his outstanding 8.7 assists, 6.3 rebounds and 1.9 steals per game do redeem his stat lines somewhat.

One of the highest plaudits we can affirm to any player is that they are a “true professional”; the kind of player that always plays to the best of their abilities, regardless of the situation. This was certainly true of Kidd, but unlike most others, he also brought out the best in others around him. If there was one overarching goodwill story of the 2011 NBA championships, it was seeing NBA stalwarts like Dirk Nowitski, Jason Terry, and especially Jason Kidd, all win their first titles. Kidd had come so close before, twice losing in the finals with New Jersey (and playing in 17 consecutive postseasons) and it was heart-warming to see a guy who played the game for all the right reasons finally getting his reward.

Well played, Kiddo. Well played.

- Wildcard