30 NBA players that got better after leaving their first team

30 NBA players who got better after leaving their first team: 9. Jason Kidd

If this was just about how great the legacy of a player was, Jason Kidd would be much higher on this list. He is a Hall of Famer and one of the best point guards ever. The reason he is not higher is that the leap he made from his first team to subsequent teams is not as large as others on this list.

Jason Kidd was drafted with the second overall pick in 1994 by the Dallas Mavericks and was the Co-Rookie of the Year alongside Grant Hill. He was an All-Star in his second season, averaging 16.6 points, 9.7 assists, 6.8 rebounds and 2.2 steals per game. However, Kidd did not get along with management and was ultimately traded to the Phoenix Suns in the midst of his third season, along with Loren Meyer and Tony Dumas, for Michael Finley, A.C. Green and Sam Cassell.

Kidd would play four and a half seasons in Phoenix and made three All-Star games, three All-NBA First Teams, three All-Defensive teams and led the league in assists three times. During his time with the Suns, Kidd would be arrested for domestic abuse against his wife and ultimately was traded again, this time, to the then, New Jersey Nets. Although he was already a success, his career went to even greater heights in his new home.

Kidd made five more All-Star appearances in New Jersey, as well as three All-NBA teams and six All-Defensive teams. He led the league in assists twice and made two consecutive NBA Finals. Kidd was a dynamic player and along with Richard Jefferson and Kenyon Martin, they were perennially a threat. He would ultimately be moved back to the Dallas Mavericks when the Nets team stopped contending. He would finally win a title with the Dallas Mavericks as a 37-year-old before wrapping his career as a New York Knick. Jason Kidd was truly great.