"Chicago will make a run at Steve Nash and Jason Kidd in free agency, according to a source. C.J. Watson filled in admirably in place of an injured Derrick Rose in the postseason, but the Bulls are expected to look to upgrade at point guard during Rose’s absence."
So here are three possible options on the table; Watson, Jason Kidd and Steve Nash. Of the three, the best player by far is Nash, but a move to the Bulls is highly unlikely.
From NBA Rumors on ESPN.com, "Mitch Lawrence of the New York Daily News reports that the Phoenix Suns want him (Nash) back and hope that a two-year, $20 million deal will convince him to stay. Adding a third year that would keep him under contract until he is 41 years old likely would do the trick. The Suns are operating under the assumption that Nash will not go to a contender and view the New York Knicks, Toronto Raptors and Brooklyn Nets as the greatest threats to usurp Nash."
The Bulls can offer nowhere near $10 million annually to Nash. The two-time MVP would have to take a huge pay cut to sign with Chicago. If Nash is scratched off the Bulls off-season plans, the two likely point guards come down to Watson and Kidd. Who should the Bulls sign? Let's take a look.
Scoring
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| Watson is labeled as a scorer despite his poor percentages |
| Player | Pts/40 | FG% | 3PM/40 | 3P% | Pts/Play | Spot-up% | FTA/FGA | PER | TS% |
| Kidd | 8.7 | 36.3 | 2.3 | 35.4 | 0.8 | 32.1 | 0.1 | 13.11 | 52.4 |
| Watson | 16.4 | 36.8 | 2.3 | 39.3 | 0.79 | 41.5 | 0.24 | 13.31 | 49.1 |
Watson's points per 40 minutes overstate his scoring advantage over Kidd. Although Watson's points per 40 minutes nearly doubled Kidd's, both players had nearly identical field goal percentages, three-pointers made per 40 minutes, points per play and PER. Kidd actually had the higher true shooting percentage despite Watson's huge advantage in spot-up shooting percentage (9.4 percent better than Kidd's). Consider that Kidd spotted up double the amount of Watson (44.2 percent of the time compared to 22 percent). If the Bulls want scoring from their point guard, neither Kidd nor Watson will do the job. Both players ranked in the 300's in points per play among NBA players. If I had to give the scoring edge to someone, I'd give it to Watson considering his youth and versatile scoring ability (Kidd has essentially become strictly a spot-up shooter).
Passing
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| Kidd is still among the best passers in the league |
| Player | Asts/40 | Ast Ratio | TO Ratio | PPR |
| Kidd | 7.7 | 41.2 | 14.2 | 6.04 |
| Watson | 6.9 | 25.6 | 12.4 | 3.02 |
Kidd, a future hall-of-famer, is a much better passer than Watson. Kidd turns the ball over at a higher rate, but his assist ratio was fifth in the league and his pure point rating nearly doubled Watson's (pure point rating is basically a version of assist/turnover ratio where a turnover hurts more than an assist helps). Kidd is one of the best passers of all time, so his advantage over Watson in this department shouldn't come as a surprise.
Defense
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| Kidd was matched up on Wade and LeBron throughout the Finals |
| Player | Pts/Play | Opp's PER | Stls/40 | D-Play/40 | Opp's FG% | SF% | 2 Yr. Adjusted +/- |
| Kidd | 0.83 | 15.3 | 2.4 | 2.93 | 38.5 | 3.6 | 3.08 |
| Watson | 0.88 | 17.6 | 1.6 | 2.39 | 40.2 | 5.7 | -13.38 |
Defensively Kidd is much better as well, despite being 11 years the elder of Watson. Kidd was better across the board in every statistical category listed above, although not included was Kidd's rebounding prowess that is still one of the best in the league among point guards (third among point guard's in rebound rate). Kidd still has a nose for the ball, snagging 2.4 steals per 40 minutes despite his decline in athleticism and speed. Kidd was seventh among point guards in defensive play per 40 minutes with 2.93 (defensive plays are a combination of steals, blocks and charges drawn). Watson also fouls more often, committing a shooting foul 5.7 percent of the time. The most important stat of all is the two-year adjusted plus minus where Kidd is positive with 3.08 and Watson is horrible with a -13.38 (second worst in the league. Only Norris Cole was worse). The Mavs were .63 points better on offense with Kidd on the floor and 1.9 points better on defense. So not a big difference for Kidd, but compared to Watson he was practically Taj Gibson. The Bulls were 4.93 points worse on offense with Watson on the floor and a whopping 8.02 worse on defense. Also, don't forget that Kidd's defense played a large role in the Mavericks winning the championship last season. Kidd played solid defense on LeBron and Wade throughout the playoffs despite his age. Kidd has gained tons of basketball smarts on defense throughout the years.
Final Verdict
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| Perhaps Jason Kidd will be wearing Bulls red next season |
If the Bulls had to choose between these two point guards (obviously more guards will be considered, but for argument purposes lets just compare these two) Kidd is clearly the better option. Watson may have the scoring advantage over Kidd (which the Bulls will need in Rose's absence), but Kidd is virtually better at every other aspect of the game. Yes Kidd will turn 40 next March while Watson is only 28, but neither player will be part of the Bulls future. In terms of next season, Kidd is the better option and could become a respectable backup once Rose returns. The addition of Kidd will only make the Bulls defense better and his veteran presence will certainly help as well. Also consider Watson would cost the Bulls $3.7 million whereas Kidd would probably accept the veteran minimum (about $855,000). Kidd could be a nice bang for the buck.
**Statistics provided by basketballvalue.com, draftexpress.com, 82games.com, hoopdata.com mysynergysports.com and ESPN.com**
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