Jrue Holiday did just about everything he could have done in Boston. He made an All-Defense team in 2023-24, when he was also a massive part of the Celtics' championship run. In his final season, he didn't look like quite the Holiday of old, though, and it was tough to be mad at the Celtics for parting ways with him, especially with 2025-26 being a quasi-tank year.
In Portland, he looks, once more, like the Holiday of old. His $104 million contract is big, sure, but it also comes with a winning player and one of the best veteran presnces in the league — and Portland is learning that quickly.
He's been a perfect fit in PDX, despite some rumblings that he wasn't thrilled to be a Blazer. The only downside so far has been Holiday missing a few games due to injury, which is a trend the Blazers don't love, but will probably have to get used to. He's 35, after all.
Jrue Holiday is still great, but he is aging
More than ever before, players are producing at a high level well into their late 30s. So Holiday still being this solid at 35 isn't a shock — but fans should still remember that he is 35, in his 17th NBA campaign.
Celtics fans had patience with Holiday last year as he dealt with injuries and a drop in production. It doesn't appear that Portland will have to worry about the latter — Holiday is off to an astounding start with the Blazers — but the load management will probably be a theme of this season, too.
It's a trade-off Blazers fans will be happy to make, though. Holiday is immediately the best facilitator the Blazers have had in years, and in a rebuilding year of their own, Holiday not playing every game could be good for the development of some young backcourt players like Scoot Henderson and Blake Wesley, in a roundabout way.
Any 35 year-old point guard is going to come with a little baggage. Holiday's is in the form of a $104 million contract and the likelihood that he is going to miss at least 15-ish games during the season. For what he gives in return, that's not a bad deal for Blazers fans.