Jason Kidd withdraws name from Blazers' head coaching search

Los Angeles Lakers assistant Jason Kidd has withdrawn him name from consideration for the Portland Trail Blazers head coaching vacancy, he told ESPN on Sunday morning.

"Portland's a first-class organization and will have great candidates for its head coaching job, but I've decided not to be one of them," Kidd told ESPN. "Whoever they choose will have big shoes to fill from Terry (Stotts)."

Source: Adrian Wojnarowski/ESPN

ANALYSIS: Kidd was one of the Trail Blazers' early top targets, and Damian Lillard himself expressed that Kidd would be his preferred choice for the job. But according to Wojnarowski, Kidd was actually uncomfortable with that sort of public calling.

"The public nature of Lillard's endorsement -- telling Yahoo Sports that 'Jason Kidd is the guy I want' -- left Kidd feeling he would put both Lillard and Portland's process in an awkward circumstance should he pursue the opening," Wojnarowski wrote.

Lillard also mentioned Chauncey Billups as another preferred option. Portland parted ways with former head coach Terry Stotts after the franchise lost in the first round of the playoffs to the Denver Nuggets.