The Boston Celtics have proven that the hype surrounding them entering the season was well-deserved. Through their first 14 games, they have raced out to an 11-3 record, which is the best in the league. Swinging big trades for Kristaps Porzingis and Jrue Holiday has completely reshaped the fabric of this team, and they are going to be extremely tough to beat four times in a seven-game series come playoff time.
Boston is still getting big contributions from Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, and Derrick White in their starting lineup, but everyone has been enamored to see how Porzingis and Holiday would fit into the team. Porzingis has been flourishing with the C's (19.5 PPG, 6.9 RPG, 1.9 APG, 54.8 FG%), easily converting open looks created by his other teammates, and constantly taking advantage of mismatches near the hoop.
On the other hand, while Holiday has made an impact with Boston, he hasn't necessarily hit the heights that were expected of him to this point. Holiday's numbers are solid (12.8 PPG, 7.4 RPG, 5.1 APG, 43.5 FG%), but he's still finding his footing with this team, which has left something to be desired early on in the new season. And while it would obviously be great to see him fit right in like Porzingis, it's OK that Holiday is taking time to truly acclimate himself to his new team.
Jrue Holiday is still adjusting to his role with the Celtics
When the Celtics acquired Jrue Holiday from the Portland Trail Blazers after he was part of the Milwaukee Bucks blockbuster trade for Damian Lillard, Boston quickly formed the best top-six rotation in the NBA. Holiday's ability to do a little bit of everything well made him exactly what the C's were looking for in their backcourt, and in some ways he's shown what he's capable of when playing up to his full potential.
For starters, Holiday remains maybe the best perimeter defender in the NBA. Yes, he got torched by LaMelo Ball late in the C's overtime loss to the Charlotte Hornets, but the combination of Holiday and White (who was out for that game) has been putting the clamps down on a nightly basis. Beyond that, Holiday is also averaging a career-high 7.4 rebounds per game, which has been huge for a team that is often forcing a lot of misses.
Holiday also adds a playmaking balance to Boston's offense that has never really been present during the Tatum and Brown era of Celtics basketball. His 5.1 assists per game doesn't jump off the page, but he's splitting ball handling duties with White and Tatum on most nights. Holiday has no problem letting other guys take the wheel on offense, which is a welcome sight after watching Marcus Smart constantly try to assert himself as the leader of the offense.
And yet, it hasn't been all good for Holiday to this point. While his volume of shots has dropped from 15.3 shot attempts per game last season to 11.5 this season, his efficiency from the floor has taken a hit. Holiday's shooting percentage is down more than four percent from last season, despite the fact he is taking fewer shots this year. Typically when you limit your shot volume, you will hit a higher percentage of shots.
Holiday is getting open looks, he just isn't converting them like he typically does. There have been a plethora of missed layups that he probably should have hit, and not to ignore the elephant in the room, but Holiday almost certainly cost the Celtics a victory over the Hornets by missing a pair of free throws late in the fourth quarter that allowed Charlotte to send the game to overtime.
It's been a bit concerning to see Holiday searching for answers on offense. He's never afraid to default to his teammates, but it would be nice to see him convert a few more looks that fall his way. A 34.9 three-point percentage is nothing to scoff at, but again, that's down 3.5 percent from last season. You'd figure that, with all the attention other guys are getting, Holiday would be burying these shots with ease.
Chances are this will even out over time, but Holiday is adjusting from being Giannis Antetokounmpo's partner-in-crime to being the third or fourth option on Boston's high-powered offense. Holiday is going to continue to find himself with favorable matchups, especially as teams apply more attention to Tatum, Brown, and sometimes Porzingis. Knocking down shots at the perimeter and converting layups in the paint over smaller defenders is a must for Holiday in order for the Celtics offense to operate at peak efficiency.
So far, that hasn't happened consistently enough, which is a fairly picky gripe considering the Celtics have only lost three games by a combined 11 points. But there's no sense in hiding from the fact that Holiday hasn't truly found his way with this team yet, and that's OK. Boston has ample time to coalesce as a unit over the course of the regular season, and as more games get played, Jrue Holiday should only get more and more comfortable with his new team.
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