Because the Boston Celtics want to get under the NBA's second tax apron, Jrue Holiday may be on a new team by the start of the 2025-26 season. The Celtics have two tasks by doing so: One, saving money, and two, maintaining their status as a title contender.
Holiday is on an expensive contract and aging, but he is still a two-way player in an NBA that values players who are net positive on both sides of the floor. For that reason, he will have a strong enough trade market that the Celtics could accomplish their goals.
However, Holiday likely won't fetch the same haul New Orleans got for him back in 2020 or even what Portland got back in 2023. The teams that would likely be interested in him are the ones that have the same aspirations the Celtics did when they acquired him from the Trail Blazers.
Boston Celtics guard Jrue Holiday
Boston Celtics guard Jrue Holiday
© Stephen Lew-Imagn Images
The Dallas Mavericks and Los Angeles Clippers are two teams that fit that moniker. While they have come up as Holiday destinations, ESPN's Bobby Marks specifically emphasized how Kyrie Irving and James Harden could factor into the Holiday trade market (via NBC Sports Boston's "Celtics Talk" podcast).
“I think both teams you mentioned are interesting to me with Dallas and the Clips,” Marks said. “They’re interesting to me because they have two players who have player options with Kyrie Irving and James Harden. What happens with both those players I think will play a significant role as far as what the flexibility that the Clips will have and Dallas will have."
As Marks reported, both Harden and Irving could directly impact the Celtics' Holiday situation. Both teams have the contracts to make a trade for Holiday work, but neither can move on a Holiday deal until receiving clarity on their incumbent point guards.
While Harden and Irving do not profile as players the Celtics would be after, it is possible they still end up directly impacting Boston's offseason.