The Portland Trail Blazers‘ acquisition of Ja Morant immediately sparked speculation that the franchise could buy out Jrue Holiday’s contract, clearing the path for the two-time NBA champion to reunite with the Boston Celtics.
Unfortunately for the Celtics, a Holiday reunion doesn’t seem imminent.
According to insider Marc Stein, the Trail Blazers have no interest in buying out or trading Holiday’s contract despite their logjam at the point guard spot.
“League sources say Portland is not about to just usher Holiday onto the open market,” Stein wrote in his “Stein Line” substack.
The Blazers have been messaging for some time that they would like to keep Holiday, even after trading for Ja Morant and with Damian Lillard poised to make a comeback after losing a full season to an Achilles tear.
Trail Blazers Have Guards Galore
Besides Damian Lillard, Holiday and Morant, the Blazers also have rising star Scott Henderson on the roster, creating a complex situation for new head coach Micah Nori.
Henderson, who shone in his first career playoff run last season, seems poised to have a breakout year after a relatively slow start to his career. The former No.3 overall pick averaged a career-high 14.2 points and 3.7 assists last year, but at mediocre shooting splits of 41/35/84. In the playoffs, however, he shot an impressive 46% from three while averaging 15.0 points in the five-game series against the San Antonio Spurs.
If Henderson is inserted into the starting unit, Nori may make the drastic call of bringing either Holiday or Lillard off the bench. For what it’s worth, Henderson started only 20 combined games in his last two seasons after starting 32 games as a rookie.
Celtics Not Done Making Moves
One can understand why the Celtics would be keen to reunite with Holiday. In Jaylen Brown, they lost a locker-room leader with defensive intangibles that will be hard to replace. While Derrick White, their best perimeter defender, and Payton Pritchard are poised to turn into a solid backcourt, the C’s may need another “dog” to ruffle feathers.
Per multiple Celtics insiders, the Brad Stevens-led front office is not done making moves and still hopes to add some shooting and wing depth. Regardless, the Celtics feel really good about their roster entering the new season, specifically about their young core. Celtics writer Chris Forsberg recently outlined why the major offseason shakeups could help accelerate the growth of Hugo Gonzaelz and Co.
“Maybe the biggest storyline from last season was the way many of Boston’s youngest players thrived in elevated roles,” wrote Forseberg.
From Neemias Queta and Payton Pritchard shuffling into starter spots, to recent draftees like Baylor Scheierman, Hugo Gonzalez, and Jordan Walsh all thriving in elevated minutes at various points throughout the 2025-26 campaign, to Luka Garza carving out a role after barely playing at two previous stops, it’s clear the Celtics can maximize their young talent.
“Now all those players need to make another leap — or at least find the sort of consistency that the best players in the league bring on a night-to-night basis.”
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