Jrue Holiday Clarifies Response to Jason Kidd’s Jaylen Brown Comment

Jrue Holiday Clarifies Response to Jason Kidd’s Jaylen Brown Comment originally appeared in NBC Sports Boston

BOSTON – Before answering media questions following the Boston Celtics’ Game 2 victory over the Dallas Mavericks, Jrue Holiday had a statement to make.

The veteran guard wanted to clarify a comment he made in response to Mavs coach Jason Kidd calling Jaylen Brown the Celtics’ “best player” about Jayson Tatum. Asked about Kidd’s bold statement, Holiday answered, “I don’t think he’s lying.” That clip circulated on social media as if to suggest that Holiday agreed with Kidd’s assessment.

On the podium, a passionate holiday clarified everything.

“If I could say something before we start, I would like to address the comment that was made yesterday,” he said. “I feel like people took that out of context. I’ve been hearing that I prefer JB over JT and that wasn’t it. I like to praise my teammates. I like to praise my teammates when they’re playing well, and I feel like that’s what I did to my better to do.

“When I got here, JT was the first person to message me. And they both know how I feel about them, what I feel about them as players. completely different players, besides being on the same team, and the things that they’ve done in this organization and the things that they’ve done against me as an opponent, I feel like the way they play together and the way they work together is something that. it is sacred and something that cannot be broken.

“So just to respond to yesterday’s comment, I don’t prefer one or the other. I prefer both. They’re both superstars and that’s being showcased here on the biggest stage in the world.”

The Celts won Sunday’s clash 105-98 despite another lackluster performance from Tatum, who finished with 18 points on 6-of-22 shooting. However, the five-time All-Star dished out a game-high 12 assists, including eight in the first half, tying a playoff career high and matching the Mavs’ team total through the first two frames. He was one rebound away from a triple-double.

Holiday was among the C’s who benefited most from Tatum’s timely plays. The 33-year-old scored a team-high 26 points on 11-of-14 shooting. Most of the damage was done in the paint, with Tatum connecting on the assist.

During his on-court postgame interview with ESPN, Holiday credited Tatum for fueling his big offensive night.

“I think I just got the opportunity,” Holiday said. “I would say a lot of it was JT. JT was attacking the basket, they were double-teaming him, and he was making the right play. … The way he played tonight, the way he led us, getting into painting and making plays, finding myself wide open, it was all about him.”

It was another phenomenal two-way performance for the perennial All-Defensive selection. Next to the other half “The Stock Exchange” Derrick White, Holiday helped limit Mavericks co-star Kyrie Irving to 7-of-18 shooting, making the former Celtic a brutal 10-of-39 in the first two games of the series.

If Kidd’s comment was an attempt to disrupt Boston’s chemistry, it didn’t work.

“Jrue is a great teammate, nothing less,” Brown said after the win. “He brought championship pedigree to our team. So nothing Jrue says we question. Jrue, he comes in and just is who he is. He has that demeanor, that killer mentality, and we respect that, you know what I want say ?He’s a great teammate and it’s an honor to play alongside him.”

The big holiday night helped give the C’s a 2-0 series lead as the finals move to Dallas for Games 3 and 4. Game 3 is set for Wednesday at 8:30 p.m. ET.

Watch the full holiday post-game press conference below, or on YouTube: