The Boston Celtics continued its busy offseason over the weekend by pulling off another blockbuster trade. After acquiring center Kristaps Porzingis from the Washington Wizards early in the summer, the Celtics now went and added veteran point guard Jrue Holiday in a trade with the Portland Trail Blazers.
Holiday landed in Portland last week as part of the trade that sent Damian Lillard to the Milwaukee Bucks. However, the Trail Blazers never actually intended to keep Holiday, wanting to turn him into more assets, which a trade with the Celtics achieved.
According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, the Celtics gave up a lot to get Holiday. They are sending center Robert Williams III, guard Malcolm Brogdon, as well as a 2024 first-rounder via Golden State and a 2029 first-round pick to Portland.
The Blazers are expected to keep Williams as a frontcourt partner to Deandre Ayton, whom they also brought in as part of the Lillard trade. However, Brogdon is expected to be made available on a trade market, considering Portland is loaded with young talent at the point guard position.
The Celtics, on the other hand, made a move that makes them one of the favorites in the Eastern Conference once again. They get one of the best two-way guards in the league to pair with Porzingis and All-Star duo Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown.
Holiday, who previously also played with the Philadelphia 76ers and the New Orleans Pelicans, is entering his 15th NBA season. He is averaging 16.4 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 6.5 assists per game since turning pro and has two NBA All-Star nods.
