Nets retain Kidd, confirm cracked rib

Point guard Jason Kidd remained with the New Jersey Nets on Thursday as the NBA trade deadline passed amid concerns about his health.

The team confirmed reports that Kidd has a cracked rib in addition to the back injury that forced him to miss two games and the All-Star game.

Coach Lawrence Frank defended the team’s decision not to publicize the rib injury, saying it didn’t force Kidd to miss any games and was discovered only when Kidd’s back was being examined.

“The implication was that it was being concealed, which would be a falsehood,” Frank said. “We’re not going to disclose every nick, bruise or bump that’s not preventing a guy from playing.”

Frank said Kidd couldn’t pinpoint when or how he cracked the rib, but that it could have happened during the Nets’ game at Orlando on Feb. 2. In that game, Kidd was held scoreless in 25 minutes.

Kidd, who wore padding around his ribs in Wednesday’s loss to New Orleans, attended practice but did not talk to reporters.

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The Portland Trail Blazers traded guard Juan Dixon to the Toronto Raptors for guard Fred Jones and future considerations.

Jones, 27, who went to Oregon and lives in Portland during the off-season, is averaging 7.6 points, 2.1 rebounds and 1.4 assists.

Dixon, 28, has averaged 8.9 points, 1.5 rebounds and 1.5 assists.

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Indiana Pacers guards Jamaal Tinsley and Marquis Daniels were free after being booked in a Feb. 6 Indianapolis bar fight, with their attorneys insisting their clients did nothing wrong.

A judge scheduled a pretrial hearing for March 13.

A Marion County grand jury indicted Tinsley, 29, on Wednesday on a felony charge of intimidation and misdemeanor counts of battery, disorderly conduct and intimidation in the fight at 8 Seconds Saloon.

Daniels, 26, was charged with battery and disorderly conduct, both misdemeanors.

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Point guard Anthony Johnson will begin his third stint with Atlanta after the Dallas Mavericks traded him for the Hawks’ second-round draft pick.

Johnson, 32, previously played in 112 games with the Hawks from 1998 to 2000 and 2000 to 2001.

Johnson averaged 3.8 points and 2.0 assists in 40 games with Dallas this season. He also has played for Sacramento, Orlando, Cleveland, New Jersey and Indiana.

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The Utah Jazz acquired forward Alan Henderson, 34, from the Philadelphia 76ers.

The Jazz and 76ers exchanged the right to trade second-round picks in the 2007 draft. Philadelphia also included undisclosed cash considerations in the deal.

Henderson played sparingly off the bench for the 76ers, averaging 3.5 points and 3.1 rebounds in 34 games.

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Even if a new arena proposal doesn’t win the support of lawmakers, the SuperSonics will remain in Seattle for at least one more season.

The SuperSonics won’t file paperwork with the NBA to potentially relocate the franchise by the NBA’s Thursday deadline, team spokesman Tom Savage confirmed.

Owner Clay Bennett has said that if state lawmakers do not agree to help finance a $500 million new arena in the south Seattle suburb of Renton, he would relocate the team, possibly to Oklahoma City, where he is from.