Jrue Holiday is enjoying his time with the Boston Celtics so much that the veteran guard wants to stay with the historic NBA franchise beyond his current contract.
“I would love to be here,” Holiday recently told MassLive's Brian Robb. “I feel like I'm more comfortable, I like the guys, I like the organization, I like the city.”
Holiday's contract contains a player option for the 2024-25 season. He could decline that option and become an unrestricted free agent this summer. Per league rules, the Celtics and Holiday aren't eligible to agree to an extension until six months after the deal that brought him to Boston, so the soonest that could happen is April.
“My last extension was during the year,” Holiday told Robb. “I think we can do both, talk about it and also prepare for the games and prepare for what the future holds.”
Keeping Holiday makes a lot of sense based on the value he brings to the team. He is an excellent two-way guard and provides leadership and much-needed championship experience.
The only concern is how the Celtics will be able to pay the contracts of Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, along with the high salaries of Kristaps Porzingis and Holiday. Derrick White, who has proven to be a solid fit since arriving in Boston during the 2021-22 season, has one more year remaining on his contract and is capable of becoming a free agent in the summer of 2025. Keeping everyone in place could be difficult given the limitations of the collective bargaining agreement. New.
What kind of extension could Holiday sign with the Celtics? A max contract would not be possible for the Celtics given the cost of their roster. If Holiday takes a little less than he would get on the open market, it will help the Celtics continue to be a well-stocked team.
“So he has a $37 million player option for next season. Basically, if he declines that, he'll be looking for a longer extension,” Chris Forsberg said Saturday. Celtics Pregame Live. “Give him some security, maybe give up some money next year in order to maximize the coming years. And we've seen guys do that, like Al Horford signing budget deals to allow you the flexibility of carrying an expensive roster, but knowing that he's going to be part of a championship organization, so It will come to a balance.
“I think Gru is motivated. If he feels like this is a good situation, if this nucleus is going to be here, he'll be OK with giving up some money next season. So you have to structure it right, like he's not going to do that. He gives up.” Which A lot of money, that's still a lot of money. And so I wonder what the number is, and yet if they went at it and said three years – I would have to do the quick math in my head – $35 million, $33 million, $32 million (annually), you know, as if it would still be a lot of money. There is still plenty of money to be made over the next few years.
“But I think he's OK with that. And the compromise agreement gives you some flexibility moving forward, as long as he's sure this is a championship-level organization that gives him the best chance to win another title and emerge from the final years of his career with the ability to compete.” This is what matters. Like, what matters to players at this age? We've seen that for Al, it's all about winning. And for a puppy, I think the same thing.”
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Holiday is averaging 13.3 points, 6.2 rebounds and 4.6 assists per game, while shooting a career-high 42.5 percent from 3-point range.
It's taken him a while to find his footing, which is understandable considering he's coming to a new team where he's the third, fourth or fifth option most nights. He's been Milwaukee's second choice for the past several years. Holiday is averaging 17 points over the last five games.
