On the morning of the 5th, the last rest day, the Lakers arrived in Charlotte.
Hill and Kidd had lunch together at noon. They both won Rookie of the Year the same year, which was a remarkable story back then.
Their career trajectories were quite different. Kidd had a rough start due to the 3J affair, and Jordan's retirement was his turning point. During the lockout season, he was first selected for the All-NBA First Team, but two years later, at the peak age of 28, he was traded by the Phoenix Suns for Marbury because of police reports linking him to a domestic violence dispute, which severely affected the team's home attendance.
At that time, he was about to collapse, already beaten by his wife and then sold off.
But when he arrived in Rutherford Town with a desperate heart, he found that the roster there seemed tailored for him, and the head coach's defense-and-counterattack system suited his taste. After that, he soared to become the 'league's best point guard'.
