Kidd and Billups – the old guard guards
May 3, 2009 by James Edwards
Filed under Chauncey Billups, Dallas Mavericks, Denver Nuggets, Jason Kidd, NBA Playoffs
The Denver vs. Dallas series was not supposed to happen. If you roll the tape back to the beginning of the year and someone had told you that Denver would meet the Chris Paul Hornets and that Dallas would face the Tim Duncan Spurs, then the choice was easy. The Hornets and Spurs would advance.
But nobody told Dallas and Denver about the script. Not to mention a few other things.
Ok, let’s mention them.
No Manu Ginobili. Would the Spurs have won with him? Who knows, but their chances would have increased signifigantly.
Rick Carlisle. Rick has changed Dallas. They now play offense at a slightly less frenetic pace and they play defense. While Rick was in Piston land, before Larry Brown, he did an incredible job of making each player accountable. He loves to not double team and hold his defender accountable. It is working in Dallas. (On the flip side, Carlisle was very unlikeable to everyone right down to the janitors.)
The most significant different component in the organization is Carlisle, who has Jason Kidd running a well-coordinated offense and who has the Mavericks playing better defense than they ever did under defensive-minded Avery Johnson.
Carlisle seemed to make all the right moves, getting maximum effort from the bench, from Josh Howard, and, yes, from Erick Dampier.
Jason Kidd and Chauncey Billups.
Chauncey is a kid at 32 compared to Kidd at 36
Jason Kidd and Chauncey Billups are old-school warriors. Forget sizzle. They are grade-A, superior-quality point guards for whom winning is the only meaty issue, something that gives them far more pleasure than a breakaway dunk or a through-the-legs pass.
“This series,” Mavericks’ coach Rick Carlisle said Saturday, “will be a better-basketball DVD on how to play the point.”
The young, flashy point guards of the “now” NBA are Chris Paul and Deron Williams. They’re also on vacation.
Kidd and Billups? They represent the best of the vintage point guards left playing.
“It’s two old dogs,” Denver forward Kenyon Martin said.
Yes, the old dogs are getting it done!
