Brooklyn Nets: History of Nets in NBA All-Star Game
By Phil Watson
2003: Jason Kidd
Jason Kidd had finished second in the NBA Most Valuable Player voting the previous season while leading the New Jersey Nets to a shocking NBA Finals berth and in 2003, Kidd was named an All-Star as a Net for the second time.
Kidd was averaging 19.8 points, 8.4 assists, 5.8 rebounds and 2,2 steals in 36.3 minutes per game over 47 appearances prior to the break, shooting 43.5 percent overall and 35 percent on 4.4 3-point attempts per game.
The Nets were also rolling, tied for the best record in the Eastern Conference with the Indiana Pacers at 34-15.
Kidd was named to the Eastern squad as a reserve, but played 33 minutes in Atlanta, finishing with 11 points, 10 assists, five rebounds and five steals on 4-of-9 shooting, making 1-of-4 from long range.
The game itself was a classic, with the West finally pulling out a 155-145 win in double overtime. Kevin Garnett of the Minnesota Timberwolves copped MVP honors with 37 points, nine rebounds, five steals, three assists and a block.
The Nets did not play well in the second half, going just 15-18, but still held on to win the Atlantic Division crown by a single game over the Philadelphia 76ers and missing the top seed in the East by just one game behind the Detroit Pistons.
New Jersey needed six games to get past the seventh-seeded Milwaukee Bucks in the first round, but caught fire after splitting the first four games of the series. The Nets went on to sweep the Boston Celtics in the Eastern semifinals and the Pistons in the Eastern Conference Finals.
They entered their second straight NBA Finals with 10 straight wins, but lost to the San Antonio Spurs in six games, losing two of the three games at East Rutherford after splitting the first two games in San Antonio.