Celtics Trade For Jrue Holiday Was Great Response In East Arms Race

Brad Stevens made the Celtics an even scarier team

Robert Williams was an undeniable talent who Boston Celtics fans adored for his high-flying highlights.

But with an arms race in the Eastern Conference heating up, Celtics president of basketball operations had to trade a meaningful asset to acquire a good player.

In the hunt for Banner 18, it was the wise course of action.

As initially reported by ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, the Celtics acquired veteran guard Jrue Holiday from the Portland Trail Blazers on Sunday.

In the transaction, Boston exchanged Williams, Malcolm Brogdon, Golden State’s 2024 first-round pick, and a 2029 first-round pick that is not protected.

According to Wojnarowski, Boston won the Holiday over “a few” other teams.

On Wednesday, Holiday was traded to Portland as part of the historic deal that saw Damian Lillard join the Milwaukee Bucks.

With that change, Milwaukee overtook Boston as the favorite to win the Eastern Conference.

The odds for the East and NBA Finals are currently tied between the Bucks and Celtics.

 

The franchise’s all-in drive has been made abundantly apparent by Stevens and company.

In the end, the Celtics traded for Kristaps Porzingis and Holiday this offseason, replacing Marcus Smart, Grant Williams, Robert Williams, and Brogdon. Certainly, their depth will suffer.

Additionally, they depend on Porzingis’ continued health.

But Holiday has taken Smart’s place now. A fierce, ball-hawking defensive presence is an important role with Lillard in the conference.

Let’s not forget: Derrick White remains in Boston after arguably the best season of his career.

The addition of Holiday very well could give the Celtics the best defensive backcourt in the league with those two. And, again, that’s after trading Smart.

Boston’s closing lineup in meaningful playoff minutes is as strong as anyone.

The reason Robert Williams feels like the bigger of two departures is due to his tenure and the fact Brogdon reportedly was unhappy with the organization.

Boston included Brogdon in initial trade talks for Porzingis before having to shift gears when a Brogdon-led deal fell through.

Those talks, and how the Celtics handled the elbow injury Brogdon suffered in the NBA playoffs, reportedly played into his discontent with the franchise.

While Stevens and others tried to play it off, the awkwardness is not difficult to imagine.

It very well could have come down to Stevens playing damage control. If so, he made great use of a distressed asset.

There certainly are questions that remain.

Boston’s depth at center is a weak spot, and it will need help in the front court. It’s also unlikely Stevens traded that package for one year of Holiday, who has a player option next season, which means a contract extension is down the road.

After that, the Celtics almost certainly will have a massive sum of their payroll tied to Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, Porzingis and Holiday.

It’ll force them to bargain shop to fill out other spots on the roster.

But with all that said, and with the disappointment of Robert Williams’ departure understandable, Stevens made the right move for the near future of the Celtics.

They needed a shake-up this offseason. Holiday’s arrival is the latest unexpected example of that.