Report: Dallas Mavericks 'Finalizing' a Deal to Hire Jason Kidd as Head Coach

The NBA's head coach market started to get crowded over the last couple of weeks. As several teams parted ways with their head coaches, looking to start fresh, some notable candidates became available for hire.

However, the Dallas Mavericks' situation was slightly different. Longtime head coach Rick Carlisle was never on the hot seat in the eyes of Dallas' front office. Ever since getting hired to coach the Mavs in 2008, Dallas has remained loyal to Carlisle.

But at this point, the veteran head coach wanted a fresh start for himself. So, last week, Carlisle told the Mavericks' organization that he was moving on and followed up with the news by putting out a public statement.

Like a handful of other coaches, Carlisle became available for hire. At this point, Carlisle's next destination is figured out. As he became available, the Indiana Pacers quickly connected with their former coach.

Although the Pacers planned to interview several candidates for their opening, the Pacers believed they could strike gold by bringing Carlisle back to Indiana. Therefore, both parties agreed to link up, and Carlisle is officially the next head coach of the Pacers.

Now, the Mavericks seem to believe they've found Carlisle's replacement. According to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski, the Mavs are "closing in" on finalizing a deal to make Los Angeles Lakers assistant coach Jason Kidd the next head coach.

The Dallas Mavericks are closing in on the hiring a new GM and Jason Kidd has emerged as a strong frontrunner to be hired as head coach, sources tell @espn_macmahon and me.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) June 24, 2021

Kidd, a former NBA standout guard, is no stranger to head coaching a team. Following his long and successful playing career with several organizations, Kidd jumped into coaching immediately after retiring in 2013.

He coached the Brooklyn Nets for the entire 2013-2014 season, where they made it to the playoffs and lost in the Eastern Conference Semifinals. Following a one-year stint in Brooklyn, Kidd went and joined the Milwaukee Bucks, where he coached them for three full seasons before getting fired in his fourth year 45 games into the season.

Lately, Kidd's been rehabbing his coaching image as an assistant with the Lakers. Although he received attention from several organizations last season to become a head coach once again potentially, he didn't receive any real offers. That will change this year as it seems the Mavericks are ready to bring him one board for his third head coaching job in the league.

Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated. You can follow him for live updates on Twitter: @JGrasso_.

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