Jrue Holiday sets tone in Game 1 overtime win

As he strolled to the podium following a thrilling Game 1 triumph, Jrue Holiday took a moment to finish one final text before sitting down.

He spoke with a measured and methodical tone, just as he would after a November game in Charlotte. The Celtics’ 133-128 win over the Pacers was anything but ordinary, but Holiday’s demeanor never changed one way or the other.

Never too high, never too low. A championship mentality.

His grittiness, maturity and versatility were on display all night, as he steered the Celtics past a plucky Indiana team. Holiday poured in a season-high 28 points on 10-of-16 shooting, along with 8 assists, 7 rebounds, and 3 steals, in a game-high 48 minutes.

He set up Jaylen Brown for a massive tying 3 late in regulation, making the right read and delivering the ball on the money. The Celtics likely wouldn’t have escaped without him.

“His poise and his demeanor throughout the game was instrumental for us,” Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla said.

Holiday made several timely defensive plays, including one when he forced Tyrese Haliburton into a turnover late in overtime to set up a Jayson Tatum 3.

Brown hit the biggest shot of the night. Tatum led the Celtics in points. Every starter finished in double figures in a balanced effort. But it was Holiday who dictated the action more than anyone else on either side. This was exactly why the Celtics traded for him. The lone man on the roster with a ring played like a man hungry for a second.

“He’s the reason why we won this game,” Brown said of Holiday.

Holiday stayed in Tatum and Brown’s ears and reminded them it wasn’t over. He played like a captain and willed Boston to an improbable victory.

“We knew we had it in us,” Holiday said.

Holiday’s 16 shots were his most in a game since Jan. 8. The opponent that night? The Pacers.

The reality in this series is that the Pacers are going to score. They’ve done so all season, at an historic rate, and there’s no reason to think they’re going to slow down anytime soon.

At the same time, Indiana’s defense is average at best. Haliburton is a liability on that end, and Holiday understands that. He was aggressive and looked for his shot more than he typically does.

Holiday is the X-factor for the Celtics this series. If he can continue to bring that kind of intensity and energy, the Celtics should be able to advance to the NBA Finals. Making the other team’s best offensive player play defense is often a winning formula, a tactic Holiday and the Celtics employed against Donovan Mitchell and the Cavaliers.

“A lot of it is concentration, making the right plays,” Holiday said. “We know they’re going to play fast, and they’re going to get very physical, but we are, too.”

Holiday did a little bit of everything in the first half, then he let it fly in the second. He came away with a steal one moment, then buried a 3 the next in a sizzling third quarter.

In the fourth, he tipped the ball to Tatum for a layup, backed down Ben Sheppard and finished and delivered inside once again off a feed from Derrick White. He then set up Brown for the biggest shot of the season so far.

Then in overtime, he corralled two hustle rebounds, then made the biggest defensive play of the night when it mattered most.

“He’s the kind of guy that’s going to impact the game in different ways every night,” Mazzulla said.

The Celtics don’t need him to score 28 points every night, but they do need him to be a threat– especially with Kristaps Porzingis sidelined.

Holiday said his teammates and coaches have consistently told him they’re going to need him to score at certain points. He averaged 12.5 points in the regular season – his lowest since his rookie year – but he’s more than capable of doubling that number on a given night.

But most of all, it’s his defense that really sets him apart. It’s clear the opposition respects him fully.

“He’s the best defender in the NBA and has been for a long time,” Haliburton said.