At least one notable figure is pleased that Jason Kidd is no longer the head coach of the Dallas Mavericks.
Former NBA coach Igor Kokoskov appeared this week on the “X’s and O’s Chat” podcast. During the interview, Kokoskov touched on his time as an assistant coach under Kidd on the Mavericks and got in some digs.
“I didn’t have a good experience with him, nor do I have a particularly high opinion of him off the court or as a head coach,” said Kokoskov, according to a rough translation from Serbian by EuroHoops. “And it’s fine for people to know that. That’s not just my opinion. He generally led some really gifted teams.
“After that first year in Dallas, once the season wrapped up, I got a call from Steve Nash, inviting me to join [the] Brooklyn [Nets],” Kokoskov added. “I remember thinking ‘I was working for the worst guy in the NBA, and now I have a call from best guy in the NBA.'”
Kokoskov added that there was also tension between him and Kidd over then-Mavericks star Luka Doncic, whom Kokoskov had previously coached in Serbia before Doncic’s NBA career. You can watch Kokoskov’s full interview at the link here.
The 54-year-old Kokoskov has nearly two decades of assistant coaching experience in the NBA and also served as the head coach of the Phoenix Suns from 2018-19. He joined Dallas as an assistant coach for Kidd in 2021 but lasted just one season before leaving for the Brooklyn Nets to serve as an assistant under Brooklyn’s then-head coach Steve Nash.
As for Kidd, 53, he was fired by the Mavericks earlier this year after going 205-205 (.500) with two playoff berths and one NBA Finals appearance over five total seasons in charge. Kidd does have a reputation for being difficult to work with though and reportedly did not get along with some of his players in Dallas too.
