With the speed of a mouse-click, dot-com billionaire Mark Cuban doused the Mavericks coaching career of Avery Johnson. Talk about a quick trip from the penthouse (coach of the year after the 05-06 season) to the outhouse (uh... he was fired, dude. how much more outhouse can you get?). Is the right guy leaving the Metroplex? Absolutely not. However, thanks to the NBA Contracts that are more iron-clad than an Angola lock, Jason Kidd is going nowhere... fast. You see, Mr. Kidd has a player-option deal for next year. Here's the scenario... he could opt out of his contract and hit the free agent market, where a 35-year old point guard with decaying skills would probably merit a one-year deal worth $5-7 Million. Not bad. ORRRRR... he could exercise his option with his current contract and receive the $21 Million the Mav's are obligated to pay him for the 08-09 season. Hmmm.... even Matt Millen can't screw up that choice. Kidd's play down the stretch (17-17 with him in a Mavs' uni) gummed up the works. It doesn't matter now, though. Mark Cuban has left-clicked the decision and their is no "un-do" selection.
