It seems Jrue Holiday’s talent could not wait for four years of college before showing the world what he could do. The Californian started playing basketball in high school. Here Jrue Holiday showed what he could do and continued to improve his game. He garnered a few accolades and was rated highly.
After moving to college, he played for only one year for UCLA before he turned professional for the Philadelphia 76ers via the 2009 NBA Draft. He has since been traded to the New Orleans Pelicans where he achieved his second professional All-Star mention.
Jrue Holiday Bio, Age
Jrue Randall Holiday’s story begins in Chatsworth, California where he was born on June 12, 1990. He gets his interest in the game of basketball from his parents who were both hoops players too. Jrue spent the requisite number of years at Campbell Hall School in his native Los Angeles. In his senior year, he garnered double digits in points and rebounds and led his high school team to the California Division IV state title. For his senior year efforts, he was named the 2008 Gatorade National Player of the Year and a First Team All-American by Parade Magazine.
Jrue Holiday’s time at the University of California, Los Angeles was equally successful albeit short-lived. He played 35 games in his only year with the UCLA Bruins and recorded averages of 8.5 points, 3.8 rebounds, 3.7 assists, and 1.6 steals. He was also rewarded with Pac-10 All-Freshman Team honors.
After his freshman year, Jrue declared his intention to participate in the 2009 NBA Draft. This meant that he had to forgo the remainder of his college education to go pro. As a top prospect, he was unsurprisingly selected in the first round of the exercise as the 17th overall pick. The selection saw him go on the players’ roster of the Philadelphia 76ers.
He immediately began to assert himself in the team, recording good performances against the likes of the Toronto Raptors, Cleveland Cavaliers, Chicago Bulls, and the New Jersey Nets. In his four years with the team, he hit a career-high 35 points against the New York Knicks, and also recorded a number of double-digit performances. By his fourth and final year with the franchise, he was called to the team for the 2013 NBA All-Star Game, making him the youngest player in the 76ers’ history to be named an All-Star.
In mid-2013, Jrue Holiday was traded to the New Orleans Pelicans with Nerlens Noel and a 2014 first-round draft pick moving in the opposite direction. In his first campaign, he didn’t have the chance to fully express himself on the court as he suffered a season-ending injury that saw him go under the knife in February 2014. Still, he managed 34 appearances and hit averages of 14.3 points, 7.98 assists, and 1.6 steals per game.
He would be ejected from a game due to an injury to his right leg almost a year after going under the knife. However, a month later, Jrue had already hit a remarkable milestone of 5000 points in his professional career. This injury cost him a whopping 41 games. A year later against the Charlotte Hornets, he hit a career-high 38 points before being sidelined for the remainder of the campaign thanks to yet another injury.
Holiday signed an improved contract with the Pelicans in July 2017 and recorded a memorable season-high double-double against the Toronto Raptors on November 9. He continued to put in good performances against many teams including his former team, the Philadelphia 76ers. He would later also hit 41 points in a single game against the Trail Blazers.
Family: Parents, Brothers
The Pelicans player comes from a family of basketball enthusiasts. Both of his parents, Shawn and Toya Holiday were both played the game at Arizona State and his mother was a 1982 Pac-10 Player of the Year.
His brothers, Justin and Aaron both took it a step further and went professional. His younger brother, Aaron also played at UCLA and was picked in the first round of the 2018 NBA Draft. Jrue’s little sister, Lauren attended the same college where she was part of the school’s women’s basketball team.
Who is Jrue Holiday’s Wife? Kids
It makes sense that Jrue decided to start a life with someone who shared his and his family’s love for sports and athletics. In July 2013, he walked down the aisle with Lauren Cheney. Cheney plays for the United States women’s national soccer team. The couple met while they were both students at UCLA. It took just a compliment from Lauren for them to become good friends. They were both in relationships at the time but after Holiday joined the 76ers, they soon started dating.
The couple enjoys hosting joint basketball and soccer clinics at their alma mater. In 2016, Jrue had to take a non-capped leave from the Pelicans to take care of Cheney who had been diagnosed with a brain tumor. She was heavily pregnant at the time and gave birth to their daughter, Jrue Tyler Holiday, a few weeks prior to going under the knife to take care of the tumor.
Jrue Holiday Height and Weight
Anyone who has ever watched Jrue on the court would agree that his height is as massive as his talent. The one-year collegiate player stands at a towering 6 feet 4 inches (1.93 m) and weighs an athletically ready 93 kg (205 lbs).
