Report – NBC Sports Boston
Jrue Holiday’s short mandate with the Boston Celtics is over.
The C exchanged the veteran guard of Portland Trail Blazers in the exchange of the Amphernee Simons guard and two choices of the second round, reported Shams Charania of Espn late at night.
Holiday is three years old and about $ 104 million left on his contract. The Celtics, as one of the few teams of the second apron of the luxury tax, are saving around $ 4.7 million completing this trade and save $ 40 million in luxury tax payments for the next season, according to Espn’s Bobby Marks.
Boston now costs $ 18 million on the second line of the apron, so there may be more moved to come; Charania reports that the Celtics “remain engaged in commercial interviews surrounding more key players on the roster”.
Simons is not the best defensive guard, but he is a dynamic offensive player who can shoot well from 3 points. The 26 -year -old veteran marked on average 19.3 points, 4.8 assists and 2.7 rebounds per game while shooting 36.3 percent from beyond the arch in 70 games for the blazers last season. He is entering the last season of his four -year contract of $ 100 million previously signed with Portland.
The Celtics acquired their holidays in October 2023 in an exchange with the blazers. The holidays had an immediate impact as a marker, elite defender, a great leader and someone with championship experience.
He played a key role in the Celtics race at their 18th championship with a triumph of the NBA finals of 2024 on the Dallas Mavericks.
Holiday has made many clutch games in the 2024 playoffs, including a winning theft in game 3 of the Eastern Conference final against Indiana Pacers.
In two seasons with the Celtics, the holidays were on average 11.8 points, 4.9 rebounds, 4.4 assists and 1.1 stolen per game, while shooting 39.2 percent from 3 points.
The holiday was exchanged with the Milwaukee Bucks in 2020 and helped to lead them to a title in the following season. He did the same after being treated to the Celtics. Making that company in Portland will be rather hard, but the holidays can certainly help a young blazer team that ended last season and is enthusiastic about ending his drought of the playoffs in 2026.