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[Saba Sports News] Former NBA guard Brandon Jennings made waves with a bold claim that he was a better player than Jrue Holiday, despite Holiday’s decorated career.
Celtics star Jrue Holiday has built an impressive NBA resume, earning multiple individual and team accolades, including two championships and multiple All-Defensive selections.
He’s widely regarded as one of the best two-way guards in the league (posting a Defensive Rating of 112.9) and is frequently mentioned as a top contender for Defensive Player of the Year. However, not everyone considers him one of the league’s all-time elite players.
One of Holiday’s skeptics is Jennings, who recently appeared on *Gil’s Arena*, where the panel conducted a re-draft of the 2009 NBA Draft. While Stephen Curry, James Harden, and DeMar DeRozan were taken as the top three picks, Jennings was asked for his thoughts on Holiday. Without hesitation, he dismissed the idea that Holiday was ever better than him.
“I don’t think half the players — I don’t think a lot of those players are better than me,” Jennings said. “Jrue Holiday has never been better than me in the game of basketball… He has a better career. They have better careers than me, but they’re not better than me though. Are you f**king crazy? Like, they ended up becoming better, but they’re not better than me. Yes, I’m better than all of them.”
Surprisingly, former NBA star Gilbert Arenas, Jennings’ co-host, agreed to some extent, highlighting that Jennings was a starter as a rookie, whereas Holiday, Curry, and Harden came off the bench in their first seasons.
Jennings and Holiday both entered the NBA in 2009, with Jennings going 10th overall to the Milwaukee Bucks after a stint overseas, while Holiday was selected 17th by the Philadelphia 76ers after one year at UCLA. Jennings played nine seasons in the NBA, suiting up for the Bucks (2009-2013, 2017-18), Detroit Pistons (2013-2016), Orlando Magic, New York Knicks, and Washington Wizards (2016-17) before stepping away from the league.
Holiday, on the other hand, has enjoyed a 15-season (and counting) career, playing for the Sixers (2009-2013), New Orleans Pelicans (2013-2020), Milwaukee Bucks (2020-2023), and now the Boston Celtics. Along the way, he has racked up two NBA championships, two All-Star appearances, multiple All-Defensive Team selections, and several sportsmanship and teammate awards.
This season, Holiday is averaging 10.7 points, 4.3 rebounds, and 3.6 assists for the defending champion Celtics. Meanwhile, Jennings’ lone career accolade was an NBA All-Rookie First Team selection in 2010. While injuries likely played a role in Jennings’ career trajectory, Holiday’s sustained excellence and accolades tell a different story.
Ultimately, the debate over who was truly the better player depends on perspective—but from a career standpoint, Holiday’s résumé speaks for itself.