Jrue Holiday has given the Portland Trail Blazers exactly what they hoped for when they acquired him: calm, control and a veteran voice that never drifts from the team-first script. With Portland facing the Phoenix Suns in the Western Conference Play-In Tournament, Holiday said the season has been about one thing above everything else.
“I honestly don’t remember,” Holiday said when asked by Brandon “Scoop B” Robinson when the team clicked. “Honestly, I just go out there and play. I think that whatever experience that I have, I just try to go out there and take advantage of it; whatever situation it is.”
That approach has helped stabilize a Blazers group that finished 42-40 and pushed itself into the West’s 7-8 play-in game. Holiday’s numbers back up the impact, with 16.3 points, 6.1 assists and 1.0 steals per game in 53 appearances, while also serving as a secondary organizer behind Deni Avdija’s breakout season.
For Holiday, the value has been in flexibility, not stat-chasing. “There might have been some games where I had to go and score and make plays, there’s others where I had to go and play defense and Deni would go,” he said.
“If Deni wasn’t playing, Jerami would go and things like that, so, honestly I couldn’t tell you when or whatever, but, I think it’s just about winning and it doesn’t matter how you win or what you do on the stats sheet, just go out there and do what’s best for the team.”
That message fits a Portland roster that leaned on both veteran championship DNA and a young core that kept improving through the season. Holiday’s presence has also mattered on the defensive end, where his ability to switch assignments and steady possessions gave the Blazers more structure in tight stretches.
Comments are closed.