Cancer, pregnancy and retirement: Behind NBA star Jrue Holiday's most difficult game

Despite all the glamour and money that surrounds them, NBA players are also human and, of course, they also suffer the setbacks that life brings. A good example of this is Boston Celtics superstar Jrue Holiday, who had to play his most difficult 'game' as his wife suffered from brain cancer while pregnant with their first child.

It was in September 2016 when the 2013 'All Star' with the Philadelphia 76ers announced that his wife, former American professional soccer player Lauren Cheney, had been diagnosed with a brain tumor.

To add to the terrible news for the double Olympic gold medalist, Cheney was at that time six months pregnant with her first child with Holiday.

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The American basketball star did not hesitate with his next move, and to the surprise of his fans and his own team at the time, the New Orleans Pelicans, he chose to put aside his professional obligations to be by Cheney's side.

That September, Holiday announced that he was leaving the world of basketball indefinitely to take care of his wife after she underwent an operation to remove the tumour from her head.

"My family comes before basketball. I am blessed to play this sport and be in the position I am in, but my wife is the most important thing in the world to me," Holiday said at the time of announcing his unexpected retirement.

The Pelicans themselves showed support for the player, respecting the decision made through a statement in which their general manager, Dell Demps, said: "we are all praying for a smooth delivery and a successful operation for Lauren." Their coach, Alvin Gentry added that "the important thing is that he be with his wife."

Holiday himself took advantage of his Twitter account to thank all of them for their unconditional support in those difficult times: “People need other people. Thank you all for your prayers as we go through a difficult time."

The couple had already been aware of the existence of the tumor since June, but they had decided to wait for the birth of their daughter, who came into the world that September 2016 completely healthy, to prevent her from being in any danger due to the significant risks that the operation entailed.

Finally, Lauren Cheney underwent successful surgery for her brain tumor, after which she had to face a long and slow period of recovery at her home in North Carolina, where she was accompanied at all times by Holiday.

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After two months of recovery and leaving behind one of the worst moments of his life, Holiday returned to the court on November 18, 2016 after missing 12 games with the Pelicans, but with the satisfaction of having done the right thing and with the knowledge that both his wife and daughter had moved forward.

What could have been a possible goodbye to basketball, finally became a return to the path of success in the NBA, with several million-dollar contracts that placed him among the highest paid in the American tournament, and a championship ring with the Bucks. But let's take a short tour of his career...

Jrue Holiday (June 12, 1990) was chosen in the 17th position of the 2009 NBA Draft by the Philadelphia 76ers after a single year with the University of California (UCLA) Bruins, in which he averaged 8.5 points, 3.8 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game and was included in the Pac-12 NCAA's best rookie quintet.

With the Sixers, the Californian point guard would play four seasons, until 2012-2013. In his last year, he became the youngest player in franchise history to become an All-Star at 22 years old.

At the end of that 2012-2013 season, Holiday also became the second player in Philadelphia 76ers history to average 18 points and 8 assists per game, along with the legendary Wilt Chamberlain.

Finally, on June 27, 2013, after the NBA Draft that year, he would end up leaving the Sixers to join the New Orleans Pelicans, where he would arrive in exchange for center Nerlens Noel and a first-round pick of 2014 (top 5 protected).

It was that same summer – July 7, 2013 – when Holiday married Lauren Cheney. The pair started dating soon after meeting in 2008 when they were both students at the University of California.

With the Pelicans, Holiday played seven seasons, although with some setbacks. The first of them, in his debut season that ended on February 14, 2014 after suffering a significant injury to the tibia of his right leg, which was linked to a previous injury to the shin that he had suffered on January 8.

That first year with the New Orleans team, Holiday only played 34 games, averaging 14.3 points and 7.9 assists per game. Figures that improved in the 2014-2015 season, in which he played 40 games with an average of 14.8 points and 6.9 assists per game; and in 2015-2016, with 65 games, 16.8 points and 6 assists.

The 2016-2017 campaign, despite being marred by the issue of his indefinite retirement, did not end badly at all, with 67 games played and an average of 15.4 points and 7.3 assists per game.

The season that started so badly ended in the best possible way, with Holiday receiving an extra reward in the form of a new contract with the Pelicans. He signed it on July 6, 2017, signing for five years in which he would earn $126 million.

Despite signing for five, Holiday would have just three more seasons with the Pelicans in which, by the way, he would achieve his best numbers, especially in 2018-2019 in which he had the highest average of points per game of his career with 21.2.

After the 2019-2020 campaign, in which Holiday received the NBA Teammate of the Year Award (Twyman–Stokes Teammate of the Year Award), the point guard was traded to the Milwaukee Bucks in exchange for two other point guards: Eric Bledsoe and George Hill.

2020 also came with other good news, the birth of his second child with the former soccer player. Great news that surely made that terrible 2016 a distant memory.

Holiday would enjoy three years with the Bucks, and perhaps the most notable was the 2020-2021 campaign, in which he renewed his contract for four years and $160 million, thanks in large part to claiming his first and only championship ring in the NBA after beating the Phoenix Suns in the final.

His other two seasons with the Bucks weren't too bad either. In 2021-2022 he received the NBA Teammate of the Year award for the second time and was included in the second-best defensive quintet of the tournament...

And in 2022-2023 he was nominated for the All-Star for the second time, was included in the best defensive quintet, received his third Teammate of the Year award and scored the highest score of his career in a game against the Indiana Pacers with 51 points.

At the end of the 2022-2023 campaign, rumors arose about his possible retirement, after the Bucks' failure in the playoffs and that he himself spoke of that possibility after the end of his contract. He would later come out and dismiss the notion of his retirement at that point.

However, his adventure with the Bucks ended on September 27, 2023. But he was not done in the NBA.By October 1, Holiday had a new home at the Boston Celtics .

The agreement also included the change of teams of two other players: Malcolm Brogdon and Robert Williams III.

Holiday now serves as veteran for the Boston side, bringing a whole host of experience having been put the test – both on and off the court – and emerging a proven winner.

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