Celtics are being vindicated for acquiring Jrue Holiday

During the summer, the Boston Celtics traded Marcus Smart as part of the Kristaps Porzingis deal. In doing so, they lost a former Defensive Player of the Year who was also seen as the heart and soul of the franchise. 

Jrue Holiday was sent to the Portland Trail Blazers shortly after as part of the Milwaukee Bucks' deal to acquire Damian Lillard. Boston then cobbled together a package to bring the championship-winning guard to TD Garden. 

Holiday came into the playoffs with a reputation for vanishing in the postseason. In his previous stops, he had been used as a secondary option on offense while shouldering most responsibility on defense. 

With the Celtics, he's a fourth or fifth option on offense and is surrounded by elite defensive talent at every position. As such, he's thriving.

On Saturday night, Holiday produced another masterclass. His tenacious defense and quick decision-making helped the Celtics overcome an 18-point deficit to win their third straight Eastern Conference Finals game.

"He's just a winner," Al Horford said of Holiday during his postgame news conference. "Ultimately, that's what it comes down to. He's a winner. And he stepped up in such a big way for us tonight, in that moment ... He's a winner, man. I'm so fortunate to be playing next to him. I don't take it for granted."