The Most ICONIC Point Guard DUEL Of All Time...

This is the most iconic point guard battle of all times. Steve Nash and Jason Kidd traded heavy blows in a double overtime thriller, putting on a real show for the fans at the peak of their powers. This epic clash between two of the last true point guards and the NBA deserves a deep rewind. So let's start from the beginning. The Nets were hosting the Suns in early December in the old Continental Airlines Arena in New Jersey. And coming out of their deepest playoff run in the previous year, Phoenix struck first. Stoudemire got it going early, scoring 8 of his 23 points in the first 4 minutes of the game. But we can't say the same about Sean Marion, who almost broke the backboard with his broken shot, if we can even call this flick a shot in the first place. So on the next possession, Nash found a way more reliable shooter. Shoot or shoot, no matter what ball they're playing with. This was the first season of the controversial microfiber ball that players absolutely hated and later on forced the NBA to bring back the classic leather. But as I said, shoot or shoot and Steve Nash was a 45% sniper from downtown. On the other end, his mentor responded equally. After this one, Jkid sat down for a breather while Nash continued to orchestrate the offense to perfection. And with both guys on the bench, Vince Carter stole the spotlight at the end of the first quarter. This was the last All-Star season for Vincenity, who still had the bounce, averaging 25 points per game. The floor generals returned to action in a tight game in the second period and immediately got busy. The Suns caught fire from downtown and started pulling away from the Nets a little bit. Heck, even Marion hit a couple of threes. At halftime, Phoenix led by 6 points with both Nash and Kidd dishing out 7 plus assists. And they continued doing it all for their teams in the second half as well, with Steve sacrificing his body in transition in front of the charging Vince Carter. Nash was quick to set his feet and lucky to avoid a poster. If this was a couple of years earlier, he would've been baptized for sure. He wanted to draw another charge here, but it was Kidd who got the whistle eventually. And look at this graphic of all-time triple-double leaders way before Westbrook and Jokic entered the chat. Back in the day, Jkid was the original Mr. Triple-double, and here we see his iconic free-throw routine rubbing his backside before blowing a kiss to the stand. The backup point guard of the Nets was Marcus Williams, who set up RJ beautifully here. Williams was the last player to score in the third period and the first one to open up the fourth, tying the game. And with Kidd already capturing his 78th career triple-double on this pass for Carter's midrange early in the fourth, Nash had a lot of catching up to do. Steve nails another one from deep, but on the other side, he couldn't stay in front of the maestro. Defense came second in this game as both teams surpassed 100 points with 840 still on the clock. And look at little Stevie get into a little scuffle with the much bigger Mikey Moore on the other end. As soon as Kevin Harlan uttered the Nash did this. He was heating up at the right moment, just as the game was nearing crunch time. Speaking of that, Marcus Williams was on fire in the final period. The rookie scored 14 of his 18 points in the fourth on a sizzling hot 8 of 11 shooting from the field. That's more than you can ask from a guy coming off the bench. And the same can be said about Marion who after shooting that brick in the first quarter, seemingly couldn't miss. It was a real point shootout in jersey. But then, the tempo winded down a lot as both teams ramped up their defense and points came mostly from the free throw line. You see the game trance, 29 lead changes and 12 ties. What a roller coaster of a game. So down by one in the closing moments, it was Carter who took over the responsibility. The Suns on the other side had Raja Bell taking a wide open shot to potentially win the game but he missed it and Carter secured the rebound. Look at Barbosa and Binks lying in front of the bench after that. They knew how crucial the miss is. And Vince hit both free throws without a sweat to bump the lead to 3 points with 5 seconds on the clock. Phoenix needed a miracle. Steve Nash stuns the entire arena with the off balance 3 over kid for an extra 5 minutes. The Nets would have to play the OT without Vince Carter who fouled out right before Nash hit the game tying 3. So it was time for the captain to step up and save his team. Kid was the ultimate puppet master on the court drawing the offensive foul to get stat out of the game late. And he kicked it out to Jefferson up top who knocked down the wide open look to take over the lead. Down 1 with less than 90 seconds remaining, it was time for Nash to retaliate. Nash splits the defenders and converts the end 1 to give his team a 2 point lead. And huge props to Mikey Moore for calmly knocking down both free throws here to tie the game again. Another dry period followed and the game ultimately came down to this. Kid had to shoot over the outstretched arms of the matrix and miss the potential game winner pushing the game to another OT. And there, in the absence of Carter and Stoudemire, Jefferson and Diaw were the ones who stepped up to help Kid and Nash. The suns looked more fluid after 55 minutes of action and Nash continued breathing fire from distance. Up 4 with 2.5 minutes to go, Steve went for the kill shot. The two time reigning MVP put Phoenix up by 6 with his 40th point of the night. Nets fans were in shock, desperately waiting for someone to bail them out. Jefferson makes it a one possession game and after James Jones failed to hit the wide open from the corner, the most experienced guy on the court took matters into his own hands. Jason Kidd blows his last kiss to the rim and ties the game for the thousandth time. He stuffed the box score with 38 points, 14 rebounds and 14 assists on 50% efficiency, but the suns just had to spoil his night. Forrest Diaw puts Kidd in the weight room and scores the go-ahead bucket with 14 seconds left. This exhausted the 33-year-old Kidd to the point where… A crucial mistake by the veteran which caused them the game as Steve Nash was fouled and sent in a line. A career 90.5% free throw shooter. Of course he iced them both making it a two possession game. A marathon indeed and Nash comes out of it as a winner leading his team with 42 points and 13 assists on a blistering 6 of 7 shooting from long range. That's elite. Imagine him in today's era of 10 plus 3 point attempts per night. Curry would have had a strong competition. And since I mentioned Steph, while leading the 73-9 Warriors in 2016, I bet he wouldn't expect to have problems with Isaiah Thomas and the Celtics of all teams. But MightyIT put his team on his back and shocked the Oracle Arena snapping the dubs 54 home game winning streak. I broke down that game in this video right here so check it out and talk to you in the next one. Peace out.