BOSTON — When Jrue Holiday rose up and nailed a 3-pointer late in the third quarter Monday, the Celtics guard hit a significant milestone: 15,000 career points in the NBA. The bucket came with 11 seconds left in the third quarter of the Celtics’ 114-98 win over the Knicks.
Holiday entered the game needing just nine points to get to the 15,000-point mark. But after the game, Holiday said he didn’t know he was nearing that career mark as he mostly downplayed the accomplishment.
“It’s cool, you know?” Holiday said. “It means that I’ve played long enough. I played for a long time. But it’s cool. I didn’t know it was coming. I should probably tune in a little better. It’s always good to get it when you win.”
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Holiday added he likely wouldn’t feel much pressure about hitting that scoring mark. The 33-year-old has played in plenty of games throughout his 15-year NBA career. He was selected 17th overall in the 2009 NBA Draft by the Sixers, where he started his career. Since then, he’s also played for the Pelicans, Bucks and now Celtics for a grand total of 916 career NBA games.
Holiday, of course, has accomplished plenty throughout his career. He’s a two-time All-Star, including last season with the Bucks. Naturally, he said the best part about his career has been all the winning, notably the 2021 title he earned in Milwaukee.
Holiday has impressed during his short time with the Celtics as there have been plenty of winning plays on both ends of the court. He’s matched up against bigs like Julius Randle and Joel Embiid recently, showcasing his defensive versatility. The Celtics will need all of that and more as they look to get back to the NBA Finals this season, and Holiday’s a huge part of that puzzle along with the rest of the roster.
“I think we have such a talented group of guys that it’s not really on me or Jayson (Tatum) to get them going, or (Jaylen Brown),” Holiday said. “I think just based on the way we play and the character that we have and IQ we have, it just happens. You see Sam (Hauser) coming off the bench throwing up 3s and they’re going in and then picking up full court and making a difference.”
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