Lauren Holiday’s disbelief at her husband’s sudden transfer from the Milwaukee Bucks to the Portland Trail Blazers prompted a highly shared social media post. The unexpected transition before to the commencement of training camp had an impact on the entire family. When two-time NBA All-Star Jrue Holiday was moved to the Boston Celtics a few days later, Lauren Holiday saw two silver linings: her husband playing for another title contender and a Christmas Day game in the Los Angeles area.

Jrue Holiday produced 18 points, seven rebounds, and seven assists in a 126-115 win over the Los Angeles Lakers on Christmas afternoon, then spent the evening at his house about an hour away.

“Playing on Christmas Day and being at home is a plus,” Jrue Holiday said after the game to Andscape. “What follows that is victory.” It’s strange for me to be in this green after growing up a Laker fan. It is unquestionably a wonderful surprise. “I awoke at home, opened presents, and then came here for the game.”

Jrue Holiday was the starting point guard for the Bucks when they won the NBA title in 2021, and he made his second All-Star berth in 2023. During his three seasons with the Bucks, his wife and two children fell in love with the city, and Holiday hoped to retire with the team.

However, just days before the start of most NBA training camps, the Bucks acquired seven-time NBA All-Star Damian Lillard from the Portland Trail Blazers in a multi-player trade that featured Holiday on Sept. 27. On Oct. 1, Holiday was rerouted to the Celtics, and his family relocated with him.

Lauren Holiday’s Instagram post following the initial trade provided insight into what an NBA player and his family go through after a trade.

“I’m not sharing this to say that we are entitled to anything,” Lauren Holiday stated. “I’m sharing this to say that we are human beings whose children form friendships with other children in our community, that we value family and friendship, and that we invest in the cities where we play.” We don’t just take from the city in which we play; we give to the city in which we play and give our all.”

Lauren and Jrue Holiday have no remorse about her social media statements and are still very proud of her thoughts.

“I just wrote how I felt in the moment,” Lauren Holiday explained to Andscape. “It was more for myself than for anyone else.” I received an outpouring of support. I’ve even had people tell me, ‘Oh my gosh, I love what you wrote.’ Old soccer buddies wrote me the same thing: ‘We feel you totally.’ Some folks believe that ‘Ya’ll are wealthy. You are free to go wherever you want. ‘Why are you moaning?’

“All that matters to me is that I said what I felt.” It provides a different perspective on what athletes go through.”

“I took it for what it was,” Jrue Holiday said. She did an excellent job penning it. Speaking from the heart and being vulnerable… It’s rare to have a wife and partner that can communicate that.”

Boston Celtics guard Jrue Holiday (center) is defended as he passes the ball in the second half by Los Angeles Lakers forward Taurean Prince (left) and center Jaxson Hayes (right) at Crypto.com Arena on December 25 in Los Angeles.

So far, everything has worked out well for the Holidays, who enjoy living in Boston and being a part of the Celtics family. Lauren Holiday described it as a “seamless transition” thanks to the Celtics’ assistance.

“Kids are so resilient,” she remarked. “They didn’t skimp on anything. When my daughter discovered that our neighbors’ children were the same age as hers, she knocked on their doors. They are enthusiastic about their new school. For Jrue, it is taking some time to discover his role and feel entirely comfortable adding contribution to such a strong team. I’m probably the final person in line. However, the organization has made it really simple. And the boys have made things simple for Jrue. For me, the same goes for the women on staff.”

Jrue Holiday believes that playing for the Celtics gives him the best chance of winning a championship. Holiday may be correct three seasons after reaching the Finals, as the Celtics have an NBA-best 23-6 record with a terrific quintet that includes himself, Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, and Kristaps Porzingis.

“We can play small and big,” remarked Holiday. “We have great bench players who can come in at any time and change the game and start on other teams.” And we’re hungry because JT [Tatum] and JB [Brown] have been a good duo for a long time and have made the Finals. They are hungry for a championship. Al Horford has always served as an anchor. They provide me the best chance of winning.”

After the Jrue Holiday-to-Boston transaction was completed, his wife and agent Jason Glushon discussed the 2023-24 calendar. To their delight, the Celtics were scheduled to play the Lakers on the road in Los Angeles on Christmas.

That pleased the Holidays, whose main residence is in the small hamlet of Santa Rosa Valley, 51 miles west of Los Angeles. They have 10 acres of land to enjoy with plenty of avocados and tangerines (the Holidays also sell avocados). Jrue Holiday has appeared in two Christmas games with the New Orleans Pelicans in Miami and Denver, as well as two in Milwaukee with the Bucks. Whether Jrue Holiday is on the road or at home for the holidays, the Holidays are always a family affair. However, Christmas 2023 marked the first time in his career that they were completely at home.

Jrue Holiday was born on June 12, 1990, in the Los Angeles neighborhood of Chatsworth. He grew up with two NBA teams in his backyard, the Los Angeles Lakers and the Los Angeles Clippers, and also played collegiately at UCLA. Justin, Jrue, and Aaron Holiday are all current NBA players with the Denver Nuggets, Boston Celtics, and Houston Rockets, respectively. The brothers grew up watching Christmas games, particularly Lakers games starring the late Kobe Bryant.

While Jrue and the Celtics faced the Lakers during the holidays, Aaron was absent, and Justin’s Nuggets defeated the visiting Golden State Warriors.

“It’s an honor to be able to perform on Christmas.” “It’s an honor to be in a game where kids get to wake up and the family gets to gather around the television all day to watch games as a tradition,” Jrue Holiday said.

Jrue Holiday (left) of the Boston Celtics and his wife, former professional soccer player Lauren Holiday (right), arrive at the ESPYs on July 12 at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles.

Jrue Holiday was a strong basketball player at UCLA, and Lauren was a standout soccer player. Lauren, a FIFA Women’s World Cup champion and two-time Olympic gold medalist for the United States women’s national team, is from Indianapolis, but Jrue was adamant about moving to the Los Angeles region.

“Jrue is a California boy through and through,” Lauren Holiday explained. “Every time he lands in California, whether it’s Northern or Southern California, he says, ‘The sun just hits different here.'” I enjoyed my time at UCLA and in California, so it just feels like the greatest fit. We’re family people, so we keep in touch with his family. I’m hoping my family will relocate here. California simply hits us the hardest.”

The Celtics arrived in Los Angeles on December 21 after defeating the Sacramento Kings. On December 23, Boston defeated the Clippers before facing the Lakers. Instead of staying at the Celtics’ team hotel in Beverly Hills, Holiday spent most of his time at home with his family.

The Holidays had wanted to host the Celtics as a team for dinner on Thursday, but heavy rains last week delayed plans for an outside party. The rain, on the other hand, did not deter the Holiday children and their mother from swimming in their heated pool. Mom also made a point of eating at In-N-Out Burger, a California institution.

“This is the first time [we’ve] spent Christmas with our kids in California and the first time for me,” she said. “Being at home with family has been extremely beneficial to us.” It’s been thrilling. I put up Christmas lights and made sure there was a Christmas tree before we arrived. My children were overjoyed when they arrived home. It felt like we were returning to a more lived-in environment.”

J.T. Holiday (left), Jrue and Lauren Holiday’s daughter, with Jrue Holiday’s sister, Lauren Fuller (right). On Christmas Eve, Sevyn Fuller (left), Jrue Holiday’s nephew, poses with Hendrix Holiday (right), Jrue and Lauren Holiday’s son.

On Sunday, the Holiday house was also hopping as they threw a pre-Christmas celebration for roughly 40 family members and guests. Jrue and a family member came out on top. Devin Fuller, his brother-in-law, he added, baked a fantastic sweet potato pie and a cinnamon roll cake. Gifts were distributed to everyone. There was also a taco truck outside the Holiday house for the main meal.

“Who doesn’t want to have a California Christmas?” According to Jrue Holiday. “I hadn’t been able to spend Christmas in California in years, but this year I was able to spend time with family at home.” We brought everyone over, including my cousins and children. We held a small Christmas Eve celebration. There are a lot of games. Food. A lot of talking…

“The taco truck was fantastic. There were plenty of leftovers.”

“We had to go get all the games beforehand,” Lauren Holiday explained. In our house, things get really competitive.”

Jrue was able to play “Santa” and hand out gifts to his children on Christmas morning before heading to downtown Los Angeles for the 2 p.m. PT game. Holiday was able to spend time with his children before the game and had a suite at the Crypto.com Arena to accommodate all of his family and friends who were in attendance.

The majority of the Celtics players and their families who attended the game flew back to Boston on Sunday evening. Jrue Holiday, on the other hand, chose to remain an extra night at home before flying back to Boston on Tuesday. The taco truck leftovers awaited him when he returned home after a big Christmas win.

“It felt great to be at home with your kids,” Jrue Holiday explained. “They were ecstatic to open gifts at home after Santa arrived on Christmas morning.” The importance of sleeping in your own bed cannot be overstated.

“Now I understand what my parents got out of Christmas.” As a child, you wake your parents up after Santa arrives, open presents, and your parents are present to witness it.”