Jrue Holiday found himself linked across the league in trade rumors at the deadline this past February. At the time, the Pelicans were a side that did not yet have Zion Williamson and was struggling well out of the playoff picture.
Holiday, one of the few veteran pieces the Pelicans have, was thusly linked in the rumors with New Orleans potentially looking to cash in on his value. However, a deal was never seriously discussed with any team and Holiday remained on the team as they eventually made a run at the eighth seed.
On Complex’s Load Management podcast, The Athletic’s Shams Charania discussed why the Pelicans held onto Holiday at the deadline.
“There was a lot of talk around the league that he did not want to be in New Orleans and, as the trade deadline neared, he let New Orleans know that, ‘I do not want to be moved, I’d rather stay here and see this thing through.’ And I think a lot of that has to do with the fact that they really started to play well, and then Zion Williamson’s return was right around the corner. That’s why I think this finish for New Orleans is going to be so important. Can they get in the playoffs? What damage can they do?”
After some other discussions about the Pelicans, including Brandon Ingram, Lonzo Ball and Zion Williamson, the team circled back around to Holiday as they sought more clarification as to why Holiday wanted out in the first place.
“AD was really close with him. Him and AD were really, really close. Honestly, when something like that happens, you’re looking at ‘Where are we going as a franchise? We get off to a bad start. We’re losing.’ They went through a brutal losing streak during the season early in the year, like December and January. And I think as the calendar shifted, they started to play a lot better. And then Jrue Holiday looked around and Zion’s coming back, they had a good thing going and that’s all David Griffin needed to hear.”
While Holiday was already a fan favorite in New Orleans, this should elevate him to another level. Opting to stick around and see out the rest of the rebuild as opposed to jumping ship to a contender is a move that turns players into franchise legends, a place Holiday was already well on his to becoming.
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