Time to talk business
The window opens for the Bucks to begin contract extension discussions with Jrue Holiday.
Jrue Holiday surprised his team by appearing in the locker room before the Milwaukee Bucks took the court in their game against Sacramento on Sunday, the first time he’s been able to be around them since being placed in the league’s health and safety protocol Feb. 8.
His return prompted laughs on the Bucks bench throughout the game and smiles from teammates postgame, and it signaled a step toward a full return.
The Bucks have clear- ly missed the 30-yearold on the court, whether it be trying to replace 16.4 points, 5.4 assists or his league-leading 1.9 steals or by winning games (3-5 without him), but his presence drew a sharper focus what he has meant off it.
“He’s the guy who keeps us all happy,” Bucks guard Donte DiVincenzo said. “He’s the guy who keeps us all light-hearted and having fun. We have the best job in the world, we have an amazing team and an amazing group of players and people. He’s the guy that lets us know that everybody is here to have fun.”
Not that the Bucks needed any fur
ther evidence, but seeing how the guard has assumed a leadership role perhaps only highlights what was already known: Signing Holiday to an extension will be a priority.
When the Bucks officially acquired Holiday from New Orleans on Nov. 23, the clock began ticking on when he would be eligible to sign a long-term extension with the club.
That negotiating window opens Thursday.
But unlike Giannis Antetokounmpo's “supermax” extension, there is no deadline for Holiday and the Bucks to reach an accord by. The window will remain open until either Holiday declines his player option for 2021-22 and becomes an unrestricted free agent in July, or in the unlikely event he picks up the player option, they can negotiate through next season.
According to Hoops Hype, a USA TODAY Sports property, Holiday's potential extension with Milwaukee could run four years and be worth up to $134.9 million.
This was all part of the calculus for the Bucks when they acquired Holiday from New Orleans, a blockbuster trade that included two other teams and sent Eric Bledsoe, two future first-round picks and the right to swap two more first-round picks to the Pelicans. It also meant George Hill was sent to Oklahoma
City and a first-round pick was sent to Denver.
To league observers, the Bucks didn't make the trade without the expectation of trying to convince Holiday to sign a long-term extension afterward.
“I'd say there's a comfort level doing something long-term,” said ESPN analyst Bobby Marks, who was the Brooklyn Nets general manager from 2010-15. “You don't do this type off deal unless you have a sense. And I think the sense was hey, Giannis is going to commit long term, we've got (Khris) Middleton under contract for the next three or four years here, let's get Jrue here, let's win games, show that we're going to be a top four team in the Eastern Conference for the foreseeable future.
“It's very easy when you in-house recruit players. Compared to Jrue Holiday going to meet with Dallas in the summer for a three-hour meeting. If you have that guy for seven months, you better recruit the heck out of him. It's not just doing power point presentations, it's how you travel, it's everything, your facilities, your arena, everything that kind of comes into play.”
For Holiday's part, he and his family quickly embraced the city of Milwaukee. Even before the trade was official, Lauren Holiday had already gotten in contact with the organization to find ways to use their JLH Fund to support local organizations. On Tuesday Jrue was named co-winner of the January NBA Cares Community Assist Award to recognize his “efforts to immediately provide support for those impacted by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic in their new team markets.”
And as far as putting down roots, Holiday said in mid-December “That's exactly what I want to do. I want to grow with it and I want to be here. If it's more MVPs from (Antetokounmpo) and more playoff appearances from Khris (Middleton) and we get some rings on the way that's kind of my ideal situation.”
It's incumbent on the organization to convince him it will continue to be. And while there may be some wiggle room in the extension details, part of doing that likely includes the maximum amount of dollars allowable.
“I'll just say when you make a move like that and you lose, and rightfully so, your leverage shifts,” Marks said. “You basically don't have leverage. So basically Jrue can say to them hey, this is what I am looking for. I'm looking for four additional year at $130 million. I want to get paid what (Toronto guard) Kyle Lowry is getting paid at $30 million. Because when you make a trade like; you're giving away picks and swaps. And the other thig too is it's not like they can let him go and all of a sudden they've got $30 million to go out and get a point guard next year.”
Added former Phoenix general manager Ryan McDonough, who is currently an NBA analyst and podcast host for Radio.com: “Yeah, you have to do it. You have to pay him. Obviously within reason, you hope it's not a four or five-year full max deal but it may be. That kind of the position that Holiday's in and that the Bucks have put themselves in. So it can't be a financial decision at this point.”
An extension isn't a formality and it may take time for the parties to determine what suits each party's interests best. But it's hard to deny the feeling that thus far, the match has been positive for player and team.