Subscribe
Follow Us
A few months back, Jrue Holiday was already willing to call Wisconsin his home and play for the Milwaukee Bucks for the rest of his career. He had to be traded and found his way to the Boston Celtics. The fit he had with guys like Jayson Tatum, Derrick White, and Jaylen Brown allowed him to thrive under Coach Joe Mazzulla's system. Now, he has become a beloved figure in the city and is four games away from reaching basketball immortality once again in the NBA Finals against the Dallas Mavericks.
Jrue Holiday is often the reserved type of player but continuously balls out on the court. The man of few words knows when he needs to turn the jets on and let his emotions out. A day prior to the NBA Finals is where the latter happened. He noted how big of a help the Celtics and their faithful have been to him in his journey of adjusting to Joe Mazzulla's squad, via ESPN.
“When I first came, I thought that they would hate me because of the series that went back and forth a year or two before that. They hugged me, they embraced me, and they made me feel like I was a part of the team. Since then, it has been nothing but love. I mean, you know how this city is. Once they love you, there's nothing like it. So, it's been great,” Jrue Holiday declared.
The Celtics were in dire need of a veteran leader in the backcourt. They already had Al Horford and Kristaps Porzingis up front to help their bigs and wings. The departure of Marcus Smart made the situation look worse. But, it was Jrue Holiday who stepped up as a leader to help guys like Jaden Springer, Payton Pritchard, Derrick White, and Oshae Brissett. All of which have been following him through example.
Jrue Holiday's fit with the Celtics
Holiday is not quite the loudest person but he surely knows how to impact a team positively. He makes do on the court and illustrates how one of the most well-rounded guards in the league should play. If Joe Mazzulla needs him to screen for Jayson Tatum or Derrick White, he'll do it. The star player in the opposing team is a guard that thrives in isolation? Holiday is certainly up for that challenge.
It is for those reasons that the Celtics faithful love Holiday. He embodies the spirit that Red Auerbach left when it came to passing the ball around and doing what it takes for the team to win. His greatness is also translated into numbers.
He found his place in a well-spaced Celtics offense which gets him to knock down field goals with a 48% clip. Holiday also does better on the outside because he laces 42% of the attempts he takes. All of that adds up to an average of 12 points for this season. Not to mention, he is also stealing the ball an average of 1.3 times leading up to this NBA Finals series against the Mavericks which speaks about how great of a perimeter defender he is. His helps takes a lot of weight off the shoulders of Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown.
Luka Doncic and the Mavericks are going to be the next challenge for him. With a loud crowd surrounding the Celtics' parquet floors and 17 banners hanging in the rafters, the love that the city is giving him will be a huge factor.
