The Milwaukee Bucks made a significant change right before the 2023-24 season began. They sent Jrue Holiday to the Portland Trail Blazers in a huge trade for Damian Lillard. When talking to Golden State Warriors player Draymond Green, Holiday shared his feelings after learning about the trade.
“I was just really surprised because they could have given me at least 24 hours' notice. Not just five minutes. Maybe I'm asking for too much. It feels like I earned something there,” Holiday said, according to The Volume’s X account. per The Volume’s X account.
Holiday also revealed that he didn’t find out about the news until later because he was sleeping.
“I'm taking a nap, I see the text, I see the call from the GM, and I’m like, ‘I’ll call him back,’ like, I’m deep in this nap. Two seconds later, my agent called me. So I pick up his call [and] he’s like, ‘You talk to him?’ He’s like, ‘Well, you just got traded, so you should probably call him back,'” Holiday said.
Holiday did not remain with Portland for long. A few days later, they traded him to the Boston Celtics.
Jrue Holiday & Celtics Mutually Want Extension: Report
Holiday has a player option for next season, meaning he could leave the Celtics during the 2024 NBA Offseason. ESPN’s Brian Windhorst revealed that both sides have mutual interest in agreeing to an extension. More than that, they want to work it out as soon as possible.
“He is eligible on April 1 too. He’s already eligible now, but he – this sounds funky – he gets more eligible April 1. There’s fewer limits on what he can sign April 1. And I do think that there’s interest on both sides to get something done sooner rather than later. Whether they do or not, I don’t know,” Windhorst said on the March 25 episode of “The Hoop Collective.”
Holiday has helped the Celtics reach the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference. If he agrees to an extension with Boston, the Bucks would have to face him for the next several years. He could potentially become a heated playoff rival in that time should the Bucks and Celtics continue to battle on another in the postseason.
Giannis Antetokounmpo Reveals Difficulties with Jrue Holiday Trade
This is the first time Giannis Antetokounmpo and Holiday have played on separate teams since 2020. While talking with Eurohoops, Giannis revealed that among the hardships this season, losing Holiday was one of them.
“It’s a tough season, we changed four coaches in six months, it’s tough,” Antetokounmpo told EuroHoops in a February 21 story. “We traded Jrue Holiday. I won’t say I didn’t like it because Damian Lillard is now my teammate, and with him, we’re going to win the championship, but my best friend, who was living two minutes away from me, is tough. We won the championship, and we cried together. That part is hard, but the NBA is a business. We all understand that there are trades.”
The Bucks are still the No. 2 seed without Holiday thanks to Giannis and Lillards. However, knowing their goals, they will more likely than not have to face Holiday and the Celtics to win another title.
