The two biggest questions during the NBA offseason were where superstars Damian Lillard and James Harden would land before the dust settled ahead of the 2023-24 campaign.
In Lillard’s case, he wasn’t able to get his wish of wanting to play for the Miami Heat, with the Portland Trail Blazers trading him to the Milwaukee Bucks.
Even though it wasn’t where he wanted to go initially, it’s not a bad consolation as he will be able to contend for potentially the rest of his career in the league.
Harden, however, remains in limbo with no telling what will happen, with the Los Angeles Clippers recently pulling out of trade talks with the Philadelphia 76ers.
As a result of the Lillard trade, Jrue Holiday was dealt to Portland in what would be a very short stint, as the team intended to move him right away, and as a result, they shipped him to the Boston Celtics.
This move was thought to be another game-changer for Boston, and so far, it looks like exactly that after what he did to the New York Knicks defensively, according to NBA Stats via NBACentral.
Jrue Holiday’s defense last night:
Julius Randle: 1/10 FG
Jalen Brunson: 0/4 FG
RJ Barrett: 1/4 FG(Via @nbastats ) pic.twitter.com/bjlBfatfBn
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) October 26, 2023
With Kristaps Porzingis dropping 30 points in his debut for the Celtics and Holiday putting on a clinic defensively, the future might be bright for Boston as they may have found the missing pieces to the championship puzzle.
Obviously, it’s one game, and anything can happen moving forward, but this is an impressive start for a team that chose to shake things up this summer despite already being a title contender.
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Celtics Star Says He’s Coming Off The Bench This Season