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A growing number of former Celtics have applauded Boston president Brad Stevens following a trade from the organization. Add Jrue Holiday to the list that includes Georges Niang, Jaden Springer and others. A common theme has been Stevens giving a heads up ahead of any potential trade so the player isn’t caught by surprise.
The former C’s guard talked about getting traded from Boston in a recent interview with The Athletic’s Jay King. Holiday was dealt for C’s guard Anfernee Simons over the summer in a cost-cutting move from Boston’s perspective.
“Brad communicated that (a trade was possible), and I appreciate him for it — that it was a possibility,” Holiday told King. “He even said that it might not happen; we don’t know. So, just the fact that … I mean, Brad being Brad, but him having hard conversations and being able to say something like that, I respect him. I’m really glad that he was able to just give me fair warning.”
Holiday enjoyed a stellar two-year stretch in Boston from 2023-25, winning the 2024 NBA title with the Celtics. He was named NBA All-Defensive Second Team for the 2023-24 season, where he was a crucial part of the Celtics’ title run. C’s fans will likely remember his clutch steal against the Pacers in Game 3 of the East Finals to help secure the victory.
But the Celtics cut costs this past summer, overhauling their roster. Holiday was moved to Portland partially because he still had three years and $104 million left on his contract. In getting Simons, the Celtics got an expiring contract to help their future finances.
The Blazers dealt for Holiday hoping he would be the veteran in the locker room for their younger guards like Shaedon Sharpe and Scoot Henderson, among others. Holiday enjoyed a solid start to the season, averaging 16.7 points, 5.3 rebounds and 8.3 assists through 12 games played. But a calf injury has sidelined him to open the season. All in all, it doesn’t sound like there are any hard feelings after the C’s trade.
“I think we know basketball a little bit in terms of how the money is and how not everybody can stay,” Holiday said. “So, we knew that there was going to be a change. You just don’t know what the change might be. I don’t think that I speculated or I saw what was going to happen, where everybody was going to go. No. But I think when you look at it in terms of like the business side of it, yeah, you kind of know that some change is going to happen.”