Celtics ‘Empowered’ Jrue Holiday To Take On Vital Defensive Role

If you watched the Boston Celtics for any extended period of time over the last decade, you never had to wonder who the defensive leader was.

It was Marcus Smart.

Smart, who won Defensive Player of the Year in 2022, was tasked with getting the Celtics right on that end of the floor for nearly a decade. He departed this offseason, however, opening up a pretty large role for someone to step in and fill.

In Jrue Holiday, the Celtics couldn't have asked for anyone better.

Holiday has become Boston's voice on defense, not only taking on the most difficult matchups but helping cover up the kind of early-season mistakes all teams make. He's become responsible for getting people to their spots, whether it's from the direction of Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla, or on his own.

"I feel like Joe and the coaching staff have empowered me to see through a different lens," Holiday said Wednesday, per CLNS Media. "In my career before (getting to Boston) I didn't have to worry about that, because whatever the coach would say defensively would happen. I think, by him doing that it empowers us to be like, 'We really have to be in tune with the game.'"

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Holiday's no stranger to the role of defensive leader, however. He helped spearhead a unit with the Bucks that sat near the top of the NBA's rankings throughout his Milwaukee tenure. In becoming a leader in Boston, however, he's seen first-hand what separates the Celtics.

"The versatility," Holiday said. "How everybody can guard everybody, essentially. How everybody is on a stream. It seems like the concepts here are built for the team we have."

In the first 10 games of the season, Holiday drew matchups against almost everyone. He took on smaller guards like Jalen Brunson and Jordan Poole but has also matched up with guys who are twice his size like Joel Embiid and Mitchell Robinson.

Does that remind you of anyone?

It should, because like we said, if the Celtics had to replace Smart, they couldn't have asked for anyone better than Holiday.