As Jason Kidd’s rookie year wound toward its close in early April 1995, No. 5 was already beginning to make a name for himself in the professional ranks.
J-Kidd had put together a strong body of work in his first NBA season, one that ultimately resulted in him sharing Rookie of the Year honors with Grant Hill. But one thing he had yet to accomplish was recording his first of his 107 career triple-doubles.
All that changed on April 5th against the playoff-bound Los Angeles Lakers.
J-Kidd put on one of the premier performances of his career to date, lighting up the Lakers with 19 points, 12 assists and 10 rebounds for the first triple-double of his illustrious career. His youthful Mavericks tied a season-best with 130 points and after going into halftime with the score tied at 62-62, Dallas buried LA in the second half on the way to a 19-point win.
Though the Lakers, led by Nick Van Exel and Vlade Divac, would go on to reach the second round of the playoffs — they had no answer for Kidd’s magnificent performance that night.
No. 5 shot 50 percent from the floor and knocked down a trio of three-pointers, and he was consistently putting his teammates in good positions, dazzling Dallas with pinpoint passes as he racked up double-digit assists. Jamal Mashburn led the scoring charge for the Mavs with 32 points, one of six Dallas players, including Kidd, to score in double figures in the win.
The Mavs were out of the playoff picture at this point in the season, but J-Kidd was showing just what the future could be by dropping a triple-double on the Lakers, a mark he would post more than 100 times throughout his NBA career.