The calls for Jason Kidd came in at the first minute of free agency.

Mark Cuban, the Dallas Mavericks' audacious owner, first got through to Kidd's agent, Jeff Schwartz, in Los Angeles. The San Antonio Spurs also called at 12:01 a.m. yesterday. The Nets, who have made their intentions known to Kidd and Schwartz, caught up with Schwartz at midday yesterday.

The Denver Nuggets also spoke to Schwartz, he said last night. But it seems to be a three-team race, led by two evenly matched competitors: the Nets and San Antonio.

Kidd, who plans to visit the Spurs on Sunday and Monday and perhaps another team later, will make his decision by the third week of July. "I think he feels very strongly about the Nets; he feels loyalty there, but I also think there's a curiosity out there," Schwartz said. "In one sense, the last two years have been very successful years and, as the saying goes, 'If it ain't broke don't fix it,' that's definitely in the air.

"He's not going to go gallivanting across the country. I think he's going to keep it as simple as possible. He'll make maybe another trip. He's not going to let the process drag out a while."