There is hardly anything more humiliating for an NBA star than being ignored by the opposing defense. This is what happened last night Jrue Holiday against the Grizzlies, since Taylor Jenkins had asked his players to ignore the All-Star leader. From the start of the match, Jrue Holiday found himself free to take 3-point shots, and it must be recognized that the strategy paid off overall since the Olympic champion was clumsy (8 out of 26 on shots), and that in the end, the Grizzlies won in Boston.
“It was a bold strategy”, reacted Joe Mazzulla. “He is an All-Star who is over 40% from 3-point range. It's a risky strategy, and I think he handled it well. It's a huge gift, because now we're going to see this again, and it's going to be great for us. So I'm very happy that they did that for us, and his teammates did a good job of allowing Jrue to shoot – he didn't make every shot, but we're moving forward and I'm happy that we saw that, and it’s going to be good for us.”
A magic trick
Same thought from Jaylen Brown. “Teams are trying magic tricks against us, and they're pulling rabbits out of their hats…Teams will probably do it again, and I hope they will. We have complete confidence in Jrue. Tonight wasn't his best night on shots, but we have confidence in the others to raise their level of play, and we are ready if the opponents decide to choose that path. »
If the Grizzlies made this choice, it is because in one year, Jrue Holiday went from 60% to 31% in 3-pointers taken in the corners. It was a reasoned choice, linked to his clumsiness from this “spot” this season, and his 4 out of 17 3-pointers in the match confirms that his shooting is not up to par.
“They focused completely on the racket and I had free rein,” recognizes Celtics leader. “So yeah, I knew I was going to be in that situation of taking shots, but I don't see it as a problem. There are days when you shoot well, others when you don't shoot well. Today I wasn't having a great day, but I'm going to keep shooting. »
Holiday on the bench in the 4th quarter…
Was he surprised by this tactic? “It didn't surprise me at all, and I feel like opponents often give me the green light. Even last night against the Bucks. When Jayson and Jaylen penetrate, I often find him with open shots. Some come in, some don't. But honestly, I'm enjoying it, and it's been a while since I've taken that many shots. »
Grizzlies side, Taylor Jenkins wasn't really asked about itbut he pointed out one thing: Jrue Holiday remained on the bench for the last seven minutes of the match…
“I can’t anticipate Joe’s choices, but Pritchard was clearly a problem for us… But we know what Jrue is capable of doing: he’s a double NBA champion, he can create, shoot, defend…”
