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Celtics’ Jrue Holiday on Bucks Trade: ‘They Got What They Wanted’

The versatile defensive stopper gets his first shot at his old team Wednesday night when the Boston Celtics play host to the Milwaukee Bucks.

Tim Capurso

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Celtics guard Jrue Holiday assured reporters he has no hard feelings toward the Bucks as he prepares to match up against his former team Wednesday night in Boston.

Holiday was shipped from Milwaukee to Portland in the blockbuster Damian Lillard trade and then was sent to Boston in a subsequent deal. Although Holiday may not have hard feelings, he certainly didn’t seem happy about the way the trade went down, as he told the media that “a warning would have been cool” and that the Bucks “got what they wanted,” per NBC Sports Boston.

“I think they got what they wanted so I can’t be mad at that,” Holiday said Wednesday morning. “A warning would have been cool but other than that, I’m in the best place that I can be to compete against them.”

Holiday may not hold a grudge about the trade. No one truly knows but him. However, it’s hard to imagine him not playing with an extra edge against the Bucks–and not just because it’s a battle of the top two teams in the Eastern Conference.

It had to be a harsh reality for Holiday to see the Bucks, whom he helped power to a championship in 2021, essentially tell him that they felt an upgrade at his position was needed to remain a title contender.

It also has to feel good for Holiday to get the chance to prove to the Bucks that they made a mistake by trading him.

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Tim Capurso
TIM CAPURSO

Tim Capurso is a staff writer on the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. Prior to joining SI in November 2023, he wrote for RotoBaller and ClutchPoints, where he was the lead editor for MLB, college football and NFL coverage. A lifelong Yankees and Giants fan, Capurso grew up just outside New York City and now lives near Philadelphia. When he's not writing, he enjoys reading, exercising and spending time with his family, including his three-legged cat Willow, who, unfortunately, is an Eagles fan.

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