Opinion
As the confetti falls, all the attention goes to one man.
He receives hugs and congratulations from friends and family, before putting on a championship hat, sitting on the courtside seats, alone, while tears of joy stream down his face.
It’s been over a minute since the final buzzer sounded in the 2021 NBA finals and the camera is yet to leave Giannis Antetokounmpo. I mean why would they?
He has one of, if not the greatest NBA stories to have been told, where he literally came from nothing, to now just having had a 50-point game to close out the finals.
In this moment, we know he will without a doubt win the finals MVP and will go down as the Milwaukee Bucks greatest ever player.
So of course he’s going to be the centre of attention, that being said, Giannis had tried many times to capture this elusive championship, but every time he fell short.
The difference? He had number 21 on his team, Jrue Holiday.
238 days before lifting the Larry O’Brien trophy, the Bucks pushed all their chips into the middle of the table and traded away Eric Bledsoe, George Hill, the 24th pick in the 2020 draft, two future first round picks and the rights to swap an additional two more future first round picks, in return for Jure Holiday.
Holiday had only once been an All-Star (2013) and had made the all-defensive team twice, the season before he averaged 19.1PPG, 4.8RPG and 6.7RPG.
Giannis Antetokounmpo #34 and Jrue Holiday #21 of the Milwaukee Bucks (Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images)
His stats and resume up to that point were nothing special, in reality, trading away three (potentially five if the picks swaps covey) first round picks as well as two solid rotation players for Holiday seemed desperate and strange.
The media and fans were quick to question what exactly the plan was, sure any team with Giannis Antetokounmpo in his prime would be a contender, but after getting embarrassed by the Miami Heat in the second round in the previous seasons playoffs, was Holiday really going to move the needle for them?
It was well renowned that Holiday was an elite defender, with many players around the league going on podcasts and TV spots to praise the guard and say that he’s one of the hardest players to play against.
But was a defensive specialist worth the haul they gave up? Especially when considering that Giannis had won the defensive player of the year award the season before, and during the series against the Heat, it was the offence that stalled and majorly struggled, not the defence.
Hindsight is 20/20, but looking back on it now, this Holiday trade was a steal for the Bucks.
The aim of the game is to win, not just one game but the whole league, so whenever a trade results in a championship, it’s a good trade.
Even though the Anthony Davis trade to the Lakers means they currently hold no first round picks in the draft until 2027 and their future is quite mercy, they won a championship, therefore, successful trade.
(Photo by AAron Ontiveroz/MediaNews Group/The Denver Post via Getty Images)
In Holiday’s first season with the team, the Bucks won the trade simply by winning the championship. If Holiday had decided that he no longer wanted to play basketball and retired instantly, the Bucks still would have won the trade.
However not only did Holiday keep playing, but he elevated his game to a whole new level.
Through the 2021/22 season, Holiday averaged 18.3PPG, 4.5RPG and 6.8APG to go along with 1.6 steals per game. He also shot 41% from three and 50% from the field, all the while playing an elite level of defence.
An efficient scorer and elite defender is always welcome on any NBA team, but the way Holiday seamlessly fit into the Bucks system and complimented Giannis and Khris Middleton, was what made him so impressive and made anyone who questioned the trade seem silly.
While the Bucks have remained firmly in contention for the title over the past season and a half, the one thing that has hurt them the most is the lack of games Khris Middleton has been able to play.
Having played 66/82 games last season, Middleton sprained (https://www.nba.com/news/bucks-khris-middleton-knee-injury-status-playoffs-2022) his knee in game two of the first round series and would miss the rest of the playoffs. This season, due to various different injuries, Middleton has only played in 11 out of a possible 50 games.
Without being able to rely on Middleton’s health, the Bucks are still a threat to win the title, but it means that other players needed to step up. While Giannis has continued to play at an MVP level, he too has missed games through injury. So in the absence of their supposedly two best players, it’s been Holiday who has been left to carry the load.
Defensively there was no doubt he could hold down that end of the court, but offensively is where he’s reached new levels.
Sure he’s not stuffing the stat sheet every night with points, however he has had some notable scoring nights, such as 35 points against the Pacers as well as 37 points against Toronto the very next night.
When needed to, he can become a primary scorer, but it’s not this which makes him so valuable to Milwaukee, surprisingly, Holiday has shown he can be a seriously clutch player.
One of his most notable moments this season was against the Knicks in Madison Square Garden. With two minutes and 30 seconds left, the Bucks found themselves down two points.
Having not shot the ball well at all that game, many expected Holiday to defer possession to Giannis, instead he took over.
Holiday would hit a quick three to put the Bucks up by one, after the Knicks made one free throw to tie the game, Holiday would go down the other end to find Brook Lopez wide open in the corner for a three.
With the Bucks up 100-99 and 53 seconds left, the Knicks weren’t going away. Que a tough step back three from Holiday, followed by two free throws to seal the victory.
When the Bucks needed to close out the game it was Holiday who made the clutch plays, not the two time MVP in Giannis.
However it’s one thing to have clutch moments in January, it’s a whole different ball game come playoff time, yet when the stakes are at their highest, Holiday continues to come through.
In last season’s playoffs, the Bucks had just taken a one point lead over the Celtics in game 5 of the second round, courtesy of a Bobby Portis putback off a missed free throw.
With the series tied at 2-2, the Celtics having home court advantage and the Bucks without Middleton for the series, a win on the road could swing the series and with 11.4 seconds left on the clock they needed a stop.
The ball gets inbounded to Marcus Smart who drives to the hoop and goes up for a layup, only for Holiday to come from behind to not only block the shot, but steal the ball and throw it back off Smart before going out of bounds.
Two made free throws by the Bucks make it a three point lead, and without any timeouts the Celtics would have to go the length of the floor. There’s still 5.9 seconds left though so plenty of time, except as Smart dribbles the ball up, Holiday picks his pocket and runs out the clock.
While we often associate ‘clutch’ with hitting big shots, Holidays two huge defensive plays down the stretch were just as important.
Ultimately the Celtics would prevail in seven games, but after Holidays heroics, the Bucks were a genuine chance to win the series.
When he retires, the play that will most likely be Holidays best highlight however will be from the 2021 finals.
With the series tied at two a piece, the Bucks had a one point lead with 21 seconds left on the road. Devin Booker puts his head down and starts to drive to the rim, he picks up his dribble to be greeted by a double team from P.J Tucker and Giannis. Quickly Booker spins around only for Holiday to waiting for him after leaving his man.
Like taking candy from a baby, Holiday rips the ball off Booker, runs down to the other end of the floor, where instead of holding onto possession with the shot clock off, he throws up a perfectly weighted alley-opp for Giannis, who slams it home with an ‘and one’.
That one play encapsulated everything the Bucks thought they were trading for and more, and when looking back on that series, it was one of the defining moments that swung the tie in the Bucks favour.
With Khris Middleton constantly having injury trouble, it’s not far-fetched to say that Holiday has surpassed him to become the Bucks second best player. The way Holiday has been playing on the defensive end of the floor it’s not crazy to say that he should be an all-star this season, and while it’s unlikely we will see two guards in back to back years win the defensive player of the year award, he should also be in the conversation.
Whatever you think of Holiday, there is no doubt he’s still incredibly underrated. Having signed a four year contract extension, Holiday will most likely be in Milwaukee until 2025, and while this will always be Giannis’s team, you can’t help but feel that Holiday is so much more than just a Robin to the Greek freaks Batman.
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