Bucks' Giannis on Jrue Holiday in Damian Lillard Trade: 'I Love Him as a Brother'

Giannis Antetokounmpo praised the contributions of Jrue Holiday on and off the court during their three years as teammates on the Milwaukee Bucks.

Antetokounmpo told Andscape's Marc J. Spears that Holiday was "a guy with a great and positive energy every time he came to the practice facility or came to the arena."

"He had something about him that allowed you, when you were next to him, to feel good about yourself. I'm definitely going to miss it," the two-time NBA MVP said. "And again, I wish him the best in everything that he does. And you never know down the road, you still might be teammates again. I love him. I don't love him as a basketball player. I love him as a brother."

Antetokounmpo added Holiday and his family "gave everything they could for not just the Milwaukee Bucks organization, but the city, the community." He said the Holidays "always took care of me and my family."

The Bucks traded Holiday to the Portland Trail Blazers as part of the trade for Damian Lillard, and Portland quickly rerouted him to the Boston Celtics.

Fans understood the logic behind swapping Holiday for Lillard. By pairing one of the most dynamic scorers with Antetokounmpo, the team may not get bogged down offensively to the degree it had in the postseason. Antetokounmpo's potential free agency in 2025 looms large as well.

But Holiday's wife, Lauren, referenced the human cost behind routine pieces of business in the NBA. In a statement posted to Instagram, Lauren said Jrue's trade "crushed me" because of how she and her family had put down roots in Milwaukee.

The Bucks were the shortest stop of Holiday's NBA career. He spent his first four years with the Philadelphia 76ers before playing seven seasons with the New Orleans Pelicans.

Measuring his stay in Milwaukee purely by time obviously doesn't do justice to what he accomplished there, however.