Jrue Holiday signs 4-year contract extension with Celtics
BOSTON -- Jrue Holiday will continue to play an important role for the Boston Celtics for the foreseeable future. The veteran guard and the Celtics have agreed to a four-year contract extension, the team announced Thursday.
ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski broke news of the agreement Wednesday night, reporting that the deal is valued at $135 million. The contract will keep Holiday in Boston through the 2027-28 season.
Holiday said he was having ongoing conversations with the Celtics and felt it was "pretty easy" to come to an agreement.
"I hope it works. I want to be here and I want to win multiple rings," Holiday said after Thursday's shootaround. "I've heard people here say that plenty of times, so I'm ready for that."
Brad Stevens went all in this summer when he acquired Holiday from Portland, just a few days after the two-time All-Star was traded by the Bucks in the Damian Lillard blockbuster. Stevens traded away Malcolm Brogdon, Robert Williams, and a pair of first-round picks for Holiday, who was an All-Star for Milwaukee last year and won a title with the team in 2021.
It was a hefty price for Holiday, but it's been worth it for Boston. An All-Defensive first teamer last season, Holiday has anchored a Celtics defense that ranks second in the NBA with a 110.5 defensive rating. Offensively, he's averaged 12.5 points off 48.1 percent shooting overall to go with 5.4 rebounds and 4.9 assists per game. Holiday's 43.1 percent shooting from 3-point range ranks sixth in the NBA.
"In addition to being one of the more accomplished players in the league, Jrue is an elite teammate and competitor," Stevens said in Thursday's release announcing the extension. "He is simply a person who raises everyone's level around him. He combines an unselfishness to do whatever is best for the team with an edge to take on any challenge at any time. We are grateful that Jrue is a Celtic."
To sign this new extension, the 33-year-old Holiday opted to decline his $37.3 million player option for next season. The final year, which will hit when Holiday turns 37, is reportedly a player option, according to Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe.
The deal gives both Holiday and the Celtics some security for the future, and it will also save the Celtics roughly $9 million against the cap next year. It could also help keep Boston's core together beyond next season, as Stevens and company tries to navigate life in the NBA's second apron.
Next season is when Jaylen Brown's max extension kicks in, Tatum will likely get his own max money, and Derrick White will be entering the final year of his deal. Things could get tricky after next season thanks to restrictions placed on teams in the second apron, such as not being able to put multiple players/contracts in deals, taking on more salary than they send out, and no mid-level exception -- not to mention the massive tax bill that is going to arrive on Wyc Grousbeck's desk.
But the Celtics are not worried about the future right now. Their focus is on the present and winning a title, and this extension is just another sign that Grousbeck and Celtics ownership is willing to spend whatever it takes to bring another banner to Boston.
