Milwaukee Bucks: 3 reasons why Jrue Holiday trade was worth the price – Potential willingness to stay long-term
As soon as the Bucks traded for Jrue Holiday, many immediately looked at the contract situation and tensed up. The guard is under contract for $25 million in 2020-21 and holds a player option worth $26 million for the following season and the consensus has largely been that he would opt out of his contract after next season to secure one more major deal.
Giving up the monumental haul that Milwaukee did in order to land Holiday, the possibility of him being a one-year rental has rightfully put fans on edge. However, recent chatter indicates that Holiday might see the Bucks as a suitable option long-term.
As discussed by ESPN’s Brian Windhorst on the latest episode of The Hoop Collective podcast, the New Orleans Pelicans factored in teams that Holiday would potentially consider staying with long term in the trade process:
"“From what I understand, Jrue Holiday had the freedom to talk with teams about whether he was willing to extend and there were certain teams he wasn’t willing to extend with. Him going to Milwaukee, I don’t think it’s agreed to, I want to be clear about that. And (the Bucks) can’t do it until February, but I think he is open to extending, otherwise they don’t do this deal.”"
As Windhorst made mention of, Holiday isn’t able to sign a contract extension until February at the earliest due to the trade. That will certainly simmer on in the background as he looks to accliimate himself in Milwaukee.
For now, these encouraging comments from Windhorst make the trade easier to digest, given the significant implications that it has on Milwaukee’s future. Time will tell how it plays out, but fans can hold onto some hope for now.