EL SEGUNDO, Calif. -- The Los Angeles Lakers never really solved this Princeton offense puzzle despite outlasting the Sacramento Kings in the Western Conference finals. They spent two exhausting weeks trying to chase down Mike Bibby while he darted in and out of the Lakers' defense.

Now, the Lakers will need to build a better trap against an even stronger -- and most elusive -- mouse.

	Jason Kidd, left, presents an even bigger problem at the point for L.A.

OK, Jason Kidd won't be drilling jumper after jumper like Bibby did against L.A. However, the New Jersey Nets All-Star point guard presents an entirely different problem for the Lakers because they'll have to account for Kidd's whereabouts for 48/94 -- all 48 minutes of each game over all 94 feet of the court.

"He's able to dominate a game without necessarily scoring all the points for his team," Lakers guard Brian Shaw said. "When your superstar is able to dominate by doing other things like rebounding, assists and steals and just providing leadership on the court like that, it's infectious on the team. It makes all the other guys play that much harder for him."

The one who'll be burdened with the tough task of trying to guard Kidd is Derek Fisher, who had trouble keeping up with Bibby that Kobe Bryant was called on for Bibby watch. Add Bibby's quickness to a point guard three inches taller and 12 pounds heavier than the 6-foot-1, 200-pound Fisher, and you understand the quandary Fisher and the Lakers face.

The Tale of the Tape, however, doesn't indicate Kidd's relentless attacking of his opponent.

"For the most part, he's looking to make plays, not just make shots," Fisher said. "So with Jason, you just try to stay in front of him as much as possible. You can't give him shots because he's going to make them. He's a clutch player. In the second halves of games, he's been able to step up and make key baskets for them."

Kidd averaged 16 points, seven rebounds, 10.5 assists and two turnovers in 40.5 minutes against the Lakers during the regular season. He fell two rebounds short of a triple-double but shot just 8-for-25 from the field in a 101-92 Nets road loss in which Bryant and Kenyon Martin didn't play due to suspension. In the rematch in April, Kidd scored just 13 points on 5-of-7 shooting to go with 11 rebounds and six assists, but New Jersey prevailed 94-92 at home after Bryant missed a game-tying tip-in at the buzzer.

To match Kidd's energy and intensity, the Lakers will likely enlist a platoon of guards. Fisher will start out on Kidd and Lindsey Hunter and Shaw will chip in with minutes here and there in relief. The question is who'll guard Kidd during those crucial possessions late in the fourth quarter.

Bryant, who guarded Bibby during crunch time late in the West finals, figures to get that assignment. But that brings about the risk/reward issue again for coach Phil Jackson: Do you sacrifice your star guard's scoring -- and fouls -- for defense? Said Bryant: "I'll probably guard him some."

"It doesn't matter who guards him," said Jackson, who'll emphasize a team-wide effort at all times to impede Kidd's breakneck drives up court.

	“	Nobody in the league gets the ball from one end of the floor to the other end as quickly as Jason does. For us, the main thing is getting back on defense and trying to wall guys in so they don't get easy buckets in transition. ”
		— Brian Shaw

The Lakers are well aware of the Nets' first-quarter penchant for fast starts. They've seen how Kidd puts pedal to the metal on New Jersey's fastbreak with Kerry Kittles, Martin and Richard Jefferson racing down court on the wings.

"Nobody in the league gets the ball from one end of the floor to the other end as quickly as Jason does," Shaw said. "For us, the main thing is getting back on defense and trying to wall guys in so they don't get easy buckets in transition."

Shaw probably knows Kidd's game about as well as anyone in these NBA Finals. He played against Kidd in pickup games while the two were still grooming their games in Oakland during summer breaks from school. Shaw was getting ready to make the quantum leap from UC Santa Barbara to the NBA, however. Kidd? He was still winning California state titles for St. Joseph High just across the Oakland estuary in Alameda, Calif.

"He's selfless and unselfish out on the court," said Shaw, who's seven years and one day older than Kidd. "Phil always talks to us about the more you give, the more you give back. That's probably what's most gratifying for Jason. His guys just believe in him."

Fisher knows how different, and difficult, this new point of attack will be.

"Jason in my book has been the MVP this season, and he's played that way throughout the entire postseason," Fisher said. "I have my job cut out for me as well as the rest of our guys."

Joe Lago is the NBA editor for ESPN.com.