Jrue Holiday – No hard feelings with Bucks ahead of 1st matchup،
BOSTON – Jrue Holiday said he had no problem on his shoulder as the Celtics guard started his first game against the Bucks, but noted that a warning in September from Milwaukee that he was going to be exchanged would have been appreciated.
“No,” Holiday said matter-of-factly Wednesday morning when asked if he blamed the Bucks. “I think they got what they wanted, so I can’t be mad about that.
“A warning would have been cool. But other than that, I’m in the best place possible to compete against them, who are the best team in the East and hopefully the best team in the league.”
An NBA champion with the Bucks in 2021, Holiday was traded to the Portland Trail Blazers days before the start of training camp in a deal that sent Damian Lillard to Milwaukee. A few days later, Holiday was dealt to the Celtics in another trade for a package that included two first-round picks.
The Celtics and Bucks, the top two teams in the Eastern Conference standings, will play their first of four games this season on Wednesday (7:30 p.m. ET, ESPN).
Holiday spent three seasons with the Bucks after completing a trade before the 2020-21 season with the New Orleans Pelicans. He helped the Bucks win their first championship in half a century in his first year with the franchise, before Milwaukee lost to Boston in the Eastern Conference semifinals without Khris Middleton in 2022. Then, as seeded No. 1, the Bucks were stunned. last season in a five-game first-round loss to the eventual East champion Miami Heat.
After years of being on one side of this rivalry, Holiday finds herself on the other team — something that Middleton, in particular, admitted would be difficult to get used to.
“It’s going to be weird seeing him in a Celtic uniform, but I guess we have to get used to it,” Middleton said with a smile after the Milwaukee shooting. “But it’s going to be fun to compete against him. We’ve had a lot of great battles together, so I know what it’s about on the Celtics side. I think it should be a fun and interesting matchup, for sure .”
Although Holiday made it clear he would have liked to have known about the possibility of being traded, he said he hadn’t targeted that game more than any other on the schedule. Instead, he said, the focus on Wednesday’s showdown is not because of him or Lillard, but rather because the Celtics and Bucks are considered two of the teams in NBA elite.
“It’s not like I have this one circled on my calendar or anything,” Holiday said. “I think it’s a great game because of the two teams that are playing, I think because of the caliber players that are on the pitch and all that, so that’s what I would like it to be about. act, not me playing against the Bucks.”
Boston is looking to bounce back from a disappointing loss at Charlotte on Monday night — one in which, among several late mistakes, Holiday missed two free throws with 10 seconds left that could have put the game away. Instead, the Hornets tied the game to send it to overtime and ultimately came away victorious.
Speaking about his time with the Bucks, Holiday said Milwaukee “will always have a piece of my heart” after winning its first NBA championship there. But he said he was able to move on after landing in Boston.
“I think it’s pretty much the same once I got traded,” Holiday said, when asked what he thought of the trades now that several weeks have passed. “We know it’s a business, and from a business point of view I’m in a very good position to be where I want to be, which is to win the championship.
“Again, I’m still happy to be here. None of that has ever changed. So yeah, I wouldn’t say anything has changed.”
In addition to the Christmas game against his former team, a late incident occurred Wednesday morning, when Jayson Tatum was added to Boston’s injury report due to illness. The Celtics said he would be questionable to play.
