Two-time NBA All-Star Jrue Holiday expressed his delight at the completion of his trade to the Boston Celtics while speaking at his unveiling at the TD Garden on Wednesday.
The 33-year-old moved to the seventeen-time champion from the Portland Trail Blazers, where he was initially transferred as part of a three-team trade deal that saw Blazers’ guard Damian Lillard move to the Milwaukee Bucks and DeAndre Ayton sent to Portland from the Phoenix Suns.
Holiday, an Olympic Gold Medalist, will wear the No. 4 jersey with the Celtics, and his move saw reigning Sixth Man of the Year Malcolm Brogdon and forward Robert Williams III, along with two first-round draft picks, go to the Blazers.
“It’s been very, very welcoming and I’m really just glad to be here, a part of this championship caliber group,” the former Sixers and Pelicans guard said. “And not only that, what it stands for, I mean a Boston Celtic and again, growing up in L.A. as a Lakers fan, I know a lot of my family is probably hurt.
“But this is a blue-collar town. They love people that work hard and they put their heart into it. And that’s just the type of person that I am, is every time I step onto the court, I give you my everything.”
officially official ☘️ pic.twitter.com/SfYXoJIHM2
— Boston Celtics (@celtics) October 4, 2023
Holiday explained that he chose to move to the Celtics as they provide him with the opportunity to win a championship and also added that the last few days has been a rollercoaster.
“It’s definitely been a whirlwind,” he added. “Just my family was established there and school and things like that. We have friends, but it’s also a part of the business.
“I feel like coming here is definitely my best chance of winning and being able to help the guys here that have made big moves and done great things in this league. So I’m here to really just help step up that game and become a champion.”
Holiday helped the Bucks to a 58-24 record, the best in the NBA last season, and he is relishing the chance to play against his former team, whom he will face three times in the 2023–24 season, with the first game slated for November 24.
“A few days ago, before I got traded, it was just kind of like, ‘Where am I going to land?’ I had hopes of being here, and sometimes you don’t want to get your hopes up just because, I mean, you can get your heart broken that way. But once I ended up getting traded here, that’s what I was committed to.”
Winning is really, really important to me, and that’s the reason why I play, is to win. I thought I had a chance of that in Milwaukee. It happened. Now I have the same chance and winning is the most important thing to me. But going to play against Milwaukee, it should be fun.”
Holiday is not a stranger to playing against the Celtics or at the TD Garden, having played in the East with two of his previous three teams, the Philadelphia 76ers and the Bucks. He began his NBA career in Philadelphia in 2009, after he was selected with the 17th overall pick.
He moved to New Orleans to play with the Pelicans in 2013 and spent the next seven years there before moving to Milwaukee in 2020–21. With the Bucks, Holiday won his first NBA title, teaming up with Greek-Nigerian and two-time league MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo, Khris Middleton, and Brook Lopez.
