Jrue Holiday Reportedly Could Draw Trade Interest from Contenders If Celtics Shop Star
Now that their 2024-25 season is officially over, one of the most important summers in the history of the Boston Celtics will begin with key members of the championship core potentially being available in trade talks.
Per The Athletic's Jay King, Jrue Holiday would likely be of interest to "several contending teams" if the Celtics decide to shop him in the offseason.
It's not hyperbolic to say this summer will reshape everything about the future direction of the Celtics. The biggest piece of business will be the NBA approving the $6.1 billion sale of the franchise to a group led by Bill Chisholm that was agreed to in March.
Even without knowing how a new ownership group will manage the roster and finances going forward, the Celtics seemed almost assured to make changes to their roster in the offseason because they are projected to have the highest payroll in NBA history in 2025-26 as things currently stand.
Things got even more complicated for the Celtics on Monday night when Jayson Tatum suffered a ruptured Achilles in Game 4 against the New York Knicks. He had surgery the following day, but his status for next season is uncertain at this point.
The Celtics, potentially without Tatum for an entire season, still have enough talent to be a good team, but their chances of being a title contender diminish significantly.
NBA insider Jake Fischer had already mentioned back in March that people in the league were "monitoring" Holiday and Kristaps Porziņģis as potential trade candidates if the Celtics were to move on from at least one key member of their roster.
Porziņģis would probably be the easier of the two to move just because he only has one more year on his contract, and a $30.7 million expiring salary figures to be appealing to teams looking for long-term cap relief.
Holiday has two more guaranteed years and $62.4 million plus a $37.2 million player option for 2027-28 on his contract. He will be 37 at the end of the deal if he exercises the option and his offensive performance dipped this season.
The two-time All-Star had his lowest scoring average (11.1 points per game) and assists per game (3.9) since his rookie year in 2009-10. His 44.3 field-goal percentage was his worst since 2015-16.
Holiday is still regarded as one of the best defensive guards in the NBA and has been revered as a teammate throughout his career.
Any contending team looking for a perimeter defender who will occasionally make some big shots in key moments would be a perfect fit for Holiday at this stage of his career.
