<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'>SHANGHAI, China -- Jason Kidd sat and watched the final 20 minutes of Team USA's friendly competition against Russia from the bench Sunday, his warm-ups never coming off. Coach Mike Krzyzewski, when asked why he benched Kidd, was in the middle of answering during his postgame interview when Kobe Bryant gave a two-word explanation: "He's old." Krzyzewski said Kidd will be back in the starting lineup Tuesday night when the Americans play their final pre-Olympic exhibition game against Australia, but what will happen beyond that point is fair game for open speculation. With Chris Paul and Deron Williams looking especially effective against Russia's zone defense, what we saw in Team USA's 89-68 victory over the reigning European champions could be an indication of what we'll see in the next couple of weeks. J-Kidd could be done, or at least on his way to being marginalized. That's not the way he saw it, though. "Coach wanted to get those guys more time. He wanted to see something different, get those guys into some situations," Kidd said. "I've seen everything, so I'm fine with it. I can use the rest. There's nothing to read into it." Except there is.</div> What to make of the change at the point? - Chris Sheridan - ESPN I saw a lot of 1-on-1 in the 1st half, I would've liked to see more passing. Great to see that despite that, Deron got 9 assists. For those who saw the game, did he really change the offense when he came into the game, or are those stats just a fluke?
I really thought nothing of it. Coach K just wants to see what the younger guys can do, or try out different lineups and see how well they work. Team USA won't gain anything by playing Kidd in these exhibition games. We all know how he operates so it's best to give him the rest when the games are meaningless.
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (cpawfan @ Aug 3 2008, 12:57 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div><div class='quotemain'>Part of it is combinations, but Deron was much more effective against Russia's matchup zone defense.</div> Bingo. Every team we have played has thrown a zone at us, and it has given us some problems each time (some more than others). When Deron Williams is on the floor, Team USA plays its best basketball. Plain and simple. It's great to have Kidd as a leader, but Williams is by far the best point guard we have for the international game. The rest of the team needs to pick up on some of the things Deron is doing out there. Even the wings and forwards. A simple pick n' role would work wonders for our oft-stagnant offense.
Coach K likes playing Paul in Kidd's game The Denver Post and wire services Article Launched: 08/05/2008 12:30:00 AM MDT If you're sleep-deprived and happen to be awake at 6 this morning, or perhaps catch a replay, it might be worth noting the starting lineup for Team USA in its men's exhibition basketball game against Australia. At halftime of the Americans' 89-68 victory over Russia on Sunday, coach Mike Krzyzewski made a switch, going with point guard Chris Paul over Olympic veteran Jason Kidd. While Krzyzew- ski said it was done only to get Paul more playing time that day, in some ways the move seems inevitable. Even while praising Kidd's leadership skills and importance to Team USA throughout the pre-Olympic tuneup, Krzyzewski points out how spectacularly Paul and Deron Williams have played and how the duo "needs to be on the court." What happens next may end up being Coach K's and Team USA's biggest test as they enter the Beijing Games. Anthony Cotton, The Denver Post
