Jrue Holiday ready to lead Portland’s young team

Aug 3, 2025 3:01 PM

Veteran guard Jrue Holiday is embracing his new role with the Portland Trail Blazers, fully prepared to be the experienced voice in a youthful locker room – even if it means being what he jokingly calls a “jerk.”

Speaking with The Oregonian’s Joe Freeman, Holiday reflected on the leadership he once received as a rookie in Philadelphia, drawing parallels to how he hopes to guide the Blazers’ young core.

The player recalled the influence of Andre Iguodala during his early NBA days, admitting that at the time, he didn’t fully appreciate the constant nudging and tough love from his veteran teammate.

“I didn’t understand it when I was younger,” Holiday said, “but now I get it. It helped shape me into a better player.”

He continued, “I know when I was younger and first coming in, I had vets. But I tried not to look at them as vets, more just kind of like study everything around me.”

Even now, with 16 NBA seasons under his belt and two championships to his name, Holiday says his learning mindset hasn’t changed.

“Even though I’m at this age now, I feel like I still try to do the same thing, even though guys might be younger and I might not like the same type of music or we might not be into the same thing. But I also feel like that’s what makes us a team – finding commonality and being able to mesh over that and then kind of translate to the court.”

Holiday joined Portland last month in a trade from Boston, along with the remaining three years and $104.4 million on his contract.

While the move adds a significant financial commitment for the Blazers, it also brings in a seasoned winner who can help shepherd a young group still trying to find its identity.

Despite his long tenure in the league, Holiday insists his competitiveness and hunger to win remain as strong as ever.

“Honestly, I can just be me,” he said. “I don’t really know how to do anything else. So [I’ll] come here and just be the person that I’ve always been, and, again, try to not just help out as much as possible, but to try to win.”

With Portland rebuilding around rising talents like Scoot Henderson and Shaedon Sharpe, Holiday’s presence could be pivotal – not just in terms of production, but in setting a tone of accountability, resilience, and professionalism that younger players can emulate.