Jrue Holiday Hoping To ‘Add To’ Celtics’ Championship Mystique

Celtics guard Jrue Holiday has (literally) played thousands of minutes at TD Garden throughout his career, but Thursday will represent something completely different.

He’s been booed and cheered. He’s won and lost. He’s worn green and red and purple and blue. He hasn’t experienced what it’s like when the entire city of Boston is rallying behind him to finally help bring home Banner 18, however.

It’ll be a brand-new feeling when the ball is tipped Game 1 of the 2024 NBA Finals, though Holiday doesn’t expect it to make much of a difference.

“Not for me,” Holiday said Wednesday, per team-provided video. “I would just like to add to it. I think to be a part of history would be cool, especially a history that the Celtics have and everything that comes with it. I would say that I probably don’t take a bulk of the pressure because we have Jayson (Tatum) and Jaylen (Brown) on our team, but to add to that is I feel like a part of the reason why I was brought here, the part of reason why I wanted to
come.”

Holiday’s mention of Tatum and Brown is an interesting one, as it represents the other side of the spectrum. Holiday, along with guys like Kristaps Porzingis and Xavier Tillman, haven’t experienced what TD Garden is like during the NBA Finals.

Tatum and Brown — and Al Horford and Derrick White and Payton Pritchard and Sam Hauser — have. It didn’t go well, but it provided them with insight into what it’s like to lose on the biggest stage.

It’s fuel to finally get over the hump and capture Banner 18.

“I think this team really wants to win,” Holiday said. “I know they’ve been to the Eastern Conference finals a million times. They’ve been to the NBA Finals. They’ve been to the top, just didn’t execute the way they wanted to, now that we’re here, we want to get the job done.”