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Jason Kidd
| Biography |
Jason Frederick Kidd was born on March 23, 1973, in San Francisco. His parents, Steve and Anne, welcomed a girl, Denise, a year later. Kim, the last of the three Kidd children, arrived 10 years after Denise. The Kidds lived comfortably in Alameda, a suburb of Oakland, near the Oakland Coliseum. They owned three horses. Every summer the Kidds took family vacations, including trips to visit relatives from Steve’s side of the family, in Plattsburg, Missouri.
The product of an interracial marriage, Jason always looked up to his parents. Steve, an African-American, began as a baggage handler for TWA and ultimately rose to a highly paid supervisor’s position. Anne worked as a computer programmer for Bank of America. Steve and Anne (they later divorced, but stayed on amicable terms) taught all their children to respect others and strive to meet their goals. The lessons Jason learned from his parents definitely translated to his athletic career.
The first sport Jason was drawn to was soccer. He especially liked seeing his face on the mock trading cards produced by the leagues he joined. But by the third grade at Grass Valley Elementary School, Jason was hooked on hoops. With most of his friends still playing soccer, he often found himself in games with older kids. Jason believes this is how he developed his marvelous passing instincts. To ensure he would invited back each day, he made sure to get the ball to teammates for easy scores. Jason was also heavily influenced by young superstar Magic Johnson. He watched the Los Angeles Lakers whenever they were on television and loved the way Magic orchestrated the team’s Showtime attack.
It didn’t take long for observers to realize that Jason was a special talent. He had a rock-solid build and amazingly quick hands, and could run all day. Jason wasn’t a great shooter, but no one saw the court better. Articles about him began appearing in local newspapers while he was still in grade school.
Jason also became a fixture on the playground scene in Oakland. Though he came from a different world than the other players, he earned their respect with his unselfish game. The king of the courts back then was none other than Gary Payton, who graduated from nearby Skyline High School in 1986. Already a notorious trash-talker, Payton was headed for NBA stardom, and everyone knew it. Jason gladly matched up against him, though he was often taken to school.
In 1987, Jason entered St. Joseph of Notre Dame High School, a small, private Catholic school in the Bay Area. The news was music to the ears of St. Joseph’s basketball coach, Frank LaPorte. The freshman was already receiving recruiting inquiries from college scouts. With Jason at the helm, LaPorte was confident the Pilots could compete for the state championship.
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