NET NOTES

WASHINGTON – Add Wizards coach Doug Collins to those backing Jason Kidd’s early MVP candidacy.

“I have loved Jason Kidd since I saw him play in high school. I would kill to play with a guy like that because that guy does everything but put the ball in the basket for you,” said Collins, whose love turned to competitive hate last night when the Wizards sought to stop the Nets’ three-game winning streak. “He has revitalized Kerry Kittles. He gets [Keith] Van Horn open shots. He gets the ball to [Todd] MacCulloch. They push the ball up the court. They get easy scores.

“He reminds me a lot as a point guard of Magic Johnson when he was younger. Magic used to get eight, nine, 10, defensive rebounds and it was an automatic fast break for them. That’s what Jason does. He’s fearless,” said Collins, echoing sentiments issued by Detroit’s Rick Carlisle last week. “To me, right now, if I had to vote for a most valuable player, he’s the Most Valuable Player in the league.”

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Michael Jordan was told that in his career, he had a 23-1 record at home against the Nets. “With the Chicago Bulls, I would assume?” he deadpanned … Nets were seeking their 10th road victory. They had nine all last season.

Jordan’s 51-point game Saturday came after his career low of six points. The best part about the explosion? “It got you guys off my back more so than anything. I’m sure everybody, after the six-point game, was contemplating whether I was old or could score big numbers again. I always felt I could. I felt like if I got into a good rhythm, I could score in big numbers again. For the most part, it’s gotten people off my back in terms of worrying about my individual accolades,” Jordan said.