One of the NBA’s best defenders is open to doing battle against a rising boxing star.
Six-time All-Defensive Boston Celtics combo guard Jrue Holiday recently admitted to nine-time All-Star Philadelphia 76ers forward Paul George that he would be amenable to boxing Jake Paul, a longtime YouTube star who in recent years has become boxing’s biggest box office draw.
The 6-foot-1 heavyweight, 27, boasts an 11-1 boxing record across his 12 total fights, including seven wins by knockout. In his most recent matchup, a November 15 bout in Arlington, Texas’ AT&T Stadium, Paul defeated 58-year-old former world heavyweight champion Mike Tyson by unanimous judges’ decision, 80–72, 79–73 and 79–73. According to Anne Marie Lee of CBS News, Paul is estimated to have earned $40 million from the fight, while Tyson is thought to have netted $20 million.
On George’s “Podcast P” show, Holiday conceded that he would train to do battle with Paul, too — albeit for an even heftier purse than what Paul or Tyson made last month.
Jrue Holiday would step in the ring with Jake Paul… at the right price 😂@PrizePicks pic.twitter.com/NlQqBPiquK
— Podcast P with Paul George (@PodcastPShow) December 5, 2024
“That last little fight, I don’t know nothing about nothing, but I could do that,” Holiday said of the Paul-Tyson matchup. “We could pump it up a little bit, I’ll take you through my whole training camp and all that. Once we get out there, Netflix will start messing up, so you can’t really see a lot of the fight and I’ll swing one time and then he just hit me. Alright, cool. $50 [million].”
Holiday would not be the only NBA point guard to square off against Paul. 5-foot-9 former 11-year NBA pro Nate Robinson was knocked out by Paul in 2020, early into his transition from YouTube personality to boxing star.
The 6-foot-4 Holiday, 34, is still pretty darn valuable to Boston as-is. The two-time All-Star and two-time NBA title winner has remained incredibly impressive for the reigning champs thus far this season. Boston has galloped to a stellar 18-4 record this year, the second-best in the league. Holiday has been a critical part of that, especially as a point-of-attack defender along the perimeter. He’s also an efficient scorer and a solid rebounder for his size.
In his healthy 19 games for the Celtics this year, Holiday is averaging 11.7 points on .447/.333/.909 shooting splits, 4.2 rebounds, 3.9 assists, and 0.8 steals a night. He’s finished among the top eight in Defensive Player of the Year voting across each of the last four years, and seems well in line to do it again.
