“The order in which (the trades) happened — Smart for Porzingis and Williams for Holiday — I hear caused some debate up there, but the conclusion of what Boston ended up with is a steal.” Said a veteran personnel man, “The Holiday part was a key, because they’d given up Smart. And as great as it is for Boston, for Milwaukee, seeing Jrue with the Celtics after they’d sent him to Portland for Lillard is tough. Are you kidding me? Jrue’s great. All-time great guy. He’s a winner. I mean, I know it was hard for Milwaukee to give him and Grayson Allen up, but, you know, his contract’s up after this season (player option for 2024-25). Damian’s got four more years (including his $63.2 million option for 2026-27). This is one of those things where I think they had to do it.” -via Heavy.com / December 29, 2023
