"I saw him play alongside Kevin Durant when the Americans won the gold medal in Tokyo" - Brian Windhorst implies 4x All-Defensive selection is a better player than Kyrie Irving

Jrue Holiday and Kyrie Irving are two of the NBA’s elite point guards. Both are former champs who will play significant roles in their respective team’s title aspirations next season.

ESPN’s recent release of its top 100 players may surprise many regarding both point guards’ rankings. Holiday came in at #26 while “Uncle Drew” was #33, which is something former NBA Insider Brian Windhorst wholeheartedly agreed on. He said:

“I think if you called the Nets and gave them a truth serum and said, if you could trade Kyrie for Jrue Holiday right now they would. The reason I think he’s ranked higher is because he’s an A+ defender.

“I saw him play alongside Kevin Durant when the Americans won the gold medal in Tokyo last year. He was awesome next to Kevin Durant.”

If last season was the pure basis of the rankings, then the ESPN panel who made the list and Windhorst probably got it right.

Irving missed almost the entire regular season for the Brooklyn Nets after failing to get the COVID-19 vaccine. He also couldn’t do much against the Boston Celtics in the playoffs. A fully healthy Irving in the postseason couldn’t help Kevin Durant avoid a sweep at the hands of the Eastern Conference champs in the first round.

Meanwhile, Jrue Holiday was as reliable as ever both in the regular season and in the playoffs. Without Khris Middleton, Holiday became the Milwaukee Bucks’ most dangerous threat on both ends of the floor behind Giannis Antetokounmpo.

His numbers jumped without Middleton in the playoff series against the Celtics.

Holiday averaged 21.0 points, 6.0 rebounds, 6.3 assists and 2.4 steals per contest versus Boston. This presented a solid jump from the numbers he put up when the Bucks eliminated the Chicago Bulls in the first round. He averaged 16.4 points, 5.0 rebounds, 6.8 assists and 0.8 steals in that series.

Zach Lowe, who was also on the show, completely agreed with Windhorst’s assessment:

“I don’t think truth serum will be necessary to elicit that from the Nets …One guy played a lot and the other guy didn’t play a lot and is an endless distraction to his team.”

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Jrue Holiday has been more reliable and impactful with the Milwaukee Bucks than Kyrie Irving has been for the Brooklyn Nets

Jrue Holiday has been with the Milwaukee Bucks for two seasons where he has played 126 games. Meanwhile, Kyrie Irving’s three-year stint with the Brooklyn Nets shows 103 games played. The availability and reliability aspects are unquestionably on Holiday’s side.

The two players went against each other when the Bucks and the Nets met in the 2021 NBA Eastern Conference semifinals. The series ended with a classic Game 7. Milwaukee went through the eye of the needle against Brooklyn before eventually capturing its first crown in half a century.

Kyrie Irving played only four of the seven games while Holiday was available throughout the series. Maybe Irving’s presence could have swayed the tide in the Nets’ favor, but it’s something no one will ever know.

The difference, however, was glaring last season when Jrue Holiday probably played the best series of his career against the Boston Celtics. Kyrie Irving, on the other hand, became a non-factor against Boston’s unforgiving defense, except in Game 1.

Kyrie Irving has said he’d lead a franchise to an NBA title and it could happen next season when he could also silence his doubters. Meanwhile, with Khris Middleton back from injury, Jrue Holiday and the Bucks will continue to pose a massive threat in the East.