Kidd will also change the responsibility of his remaining assistants. He previously had offensive and defensive coaches, but will now simply allow his staff to "be coaches."

Frank will remain on the staff to some extent, still filing reports to the team. He will not attend practices or games, however.

This is the latest in what has been an active start to Kidd's coaching career. He began the season by serving a suspension for a previous DWI charge and was recently fined $50,000 for spilling a cup to delay a game once he realized he had no timeouts.

Kidd was hired as a head coach immediately after ending his playing career, a decision that was questioned at the time of his hiring. Those objections have only grown louder as Kidd continues to make mistake after mistake as coach of the struggling Nets.

Expected to compete in the Eastern Conference, the Nets were 5-12 on the season as of Friday. With injuries abound, they are without several key players and have yet to gain chemistry on the court. Kidd has drawn negative attention to himself throughout, which can't help the direction of his team.


KOBE IMPRESSES


Each step Kobe Bryant takes toward a full return to the basketball court has been chronicled since the day he suffered a torn Achilles in April.

Monday's news appeared to be the most positive, as Bryant was a full participant in practice and had no restrictions, according to the Lakers.

Despite his performance, Lakers coach Mike D'Antoni still tempered expectations.

"We don’t want to jump the gun,” D’Antoni said. “We don’t know. Obviously we’ll see how he feels tomorrow and he has to go through the practice tomorrow. Then we’ll see how he feels Thursday and we’ll go through practice Thursday. We’ll see if he’s able, but like I said, today he looked good.”

Bryant went through every phase of practice, and he even played in a 5-on-5 scrimmage. In typical fashion, he didn't take it easy in that scrimmage. He looked good on accounts, with the highlight being a steal and transition dunk.

All comments from coaches and teammates painted a positive picture of Bryant's day on the court.

"He looked pretty good, really good actually. You can tell he's been working a lot on his own." Pau Gasol said. "He looked in a good rhythm and knows what he's doing out there. I think he looked really good and I look forward to tomorrow's practice.”


DAVIS OUT


The New Orleans Pelicans say Anthony Davis is expected to be sidelined four to six weeks because of his broken left hand.

The second-year big man and 2012 top overall draft choice was diagnosed with a non-displaced fracture of the fifth metacarpal of his left hand after Sunday night's victory over the Knicks in New York.

The injury occurred during the first quarter in New York, when he hit his hand on the rim while going up for a contested lob. He underwent further evaluations by team doctors Tuesday in New Orleans before the club released the timetable for his return, which spans from 12 to 20 games.

Davis started the Pelicans' first 16 games, averaging 18.8 points, 10.2 rebounds and 3.6 blocks.


RONDO'S RETURN


The Boston Celtics predicted there was no chance of Rajon Rondo returning to the basketball court in November. Now that we've transitioned into December, the Rondo watch is on.

Rondo returned to basketball practice for the Celtics this week, as A. Sherrod Blakely pointed out on his personal Twitter account. Rondo has not played in 5-on-5 contact yet, but he's on the court and that's a good sign.

As far as a timeline for Rondo's return from ACL surgery, the ball is in his court (via ProBasketballTalk). Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe wrote on Twitter that when Rondo returns to full practice is his decision, which is a sign that he's progressed to the point that he could have been cleared.

One point worth noting is that there is no rush for Rondo to return. The Celtics are 7-12 this season, and while they have gone on small streaks, there is no indication that Boston will compete this season.

Contributors: DeAntae Prince, The Associated Press