Guest Post: Brotherly Love in the NBA – Justin Holiday

This is a GUEST POST by John Miguel Hernandez. The opinions in the article are original and the author’s own point of view. If you have a differing opinion please leave a comment below. THIS IS A PART 2 of 3. See Part 1 on Isaiah Thomas here. And Part 2 on Matthew Bryan-Amaning here.

There is a special connection we share with those we love and that connection can be even stronger when those we love are family.

As children, Holiday and his younger brother Jrue Holiday would play some competitive games. Early on they both learned to harness this competitive nature to hone and grow their basketball skills.

At Campbell Hall High School in California both exceled but Jrue received the greater amount of attention, committed and played the next year at UCLA until he was eventually drafted as the 17th overall pick in the 2009 NBA draft by the Philadelphia 76’ers.

While his brother played in the NBA, Justin Holiday stayed

true to course and played four years at the University of Washington where he averaged 10.5 points, 5.2 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game his senior season. At the small forward or shooting guard position, he proved himself an excellent scorer. He can score in a variety of ways. It is reported that he has recovered from the concussion he suffered late in his college season and is shooting the ball very well in his pre-draft workouts. He is receiving a lot of attention and may go sooner than expected.

Although, he has all those abilities, his passion and his great gift is quiet and steady leadership and his ability to defend anyone. Leading and defending a talented younger brother certainly helped him mature in these areas. Later in college his coach would continue to stress the importance of leadership, responsibility, and good defense as a way of starting and getting starter’s minutes. All of this challenged and grew Holiday’s defensive skills. By his senior season, Holiday was a team captain and a member of the Pac-10 All Defensive Team.

As important as all of this is, Holiday continues to display the character that makes him a good teammate and family member, call it a mutual respect and an admiration that goes deeper than anything competitive. Call it love.
In many ways, the NBA is like a family and there is competition but behind it all there is support for each other’s goals and dreams with a focus on the good and to the giving of good.

The definitive pick for Justin Holiday is the Los Angeles Lakers at #41.