From the moment he committed to UCLA, the basketball world began to scrutinize Jrue Holiday.
Pundits, fans and message boards all asked if he could he dominate like super-freshman Kevin Love? Would he leave college for the NBA after one season?
“All this stuff, I don’t read any of it,” Holiday said last week. “I really don’t look into it. I really don’t pay attention.”
Holiday garnered so much publicity entering UCLA after he earned a spot on the McDonald’s All-American Team and won the Gatorade National Player of the Year Award as a high school senior.
Coach Ben Howland praised Holiday’s ability to manage the pressure that comes with the honors he’s earned and the UCLA jersey he wears.
“Jrue has made good strides throughout the year,” Howland said. “He has a bulls-eye on his chest, doubly big. Not only is he a UCLA Bruin, he’s also a marked man because of the success he enjoyed in high school. … Everybody’s always up for that guy. Everybody is going to give him their best shot, (and) he’s handled that well.”
Holiday played solidly at shooting guard during the regular season, but he has not matched the dominance of Love, who won the 2008 Pac-10 Player of the Year award. Holiday has struggled with his shooting at times, like Friday, when the Bruins fell to USC in the Pac-10 tournament and Holiday made none of his eight field goal tries.
Holiday is still considered to be a legitimate NBA prospect. He has a savvy understanding of the game, great vision and he can score and dribble with both hands. He will have the option to leave school this spring, just as Love did last season, because NBA teams prize the type of potential Holiday possesses.
But Holiday said he does not think about the NBA.
“To be honest, I’ve never really heard about the draft,” he said. “I know my dad has heard stuff, but he doesn’t tell me about it.”
Holiday does not boast the numbers most NBA prospects do, in part because he plays a very particular role in UCLA’s system.
The Bruins run their offense through senior point guard Darren Collison. Collison has attempted more shots than any other UCLA player. The team also looks to senior guard Josh Shipp for a scoring punch. Forty-seven percent of UCLA’s field-goal attempts come from Collison, Shipp and junior forward Nikola Dragovic. They have all shot more often than Holiday this season, which partially explains Holiday’s relatively low scoring average (8.5 ppg).
Instead, Holiday concentrates on a specific role. He typically defends the opponent’s top scoring guard, and that requires a lot of energy.
On offense, Holiday passes more often than he shoots. He has 116 assists this season and 106 field goals.
“That’s my game,” Holiday said. “Passing really gets me more excited and hyped than scoring.”
That mentality impresses Collison, the Bruins’ senior leader and most important player.
“(Holiday) has done everything to help this team win,” Collison said. “He’s not selfish. He doesn’t really care about his scoring. He just wants to do what it takes to win a ball game.”
Holiday has also formed a tight friendship with the other freshmen in his class, forward Drew Gordon, center J’mison “Bobo” Morgan and guards Malcolm Lee and Jerime Anderson.
Gordon, like Howland, praised Holiday for the way he handles all the scrutiny. Gordon was also a highly touted recruit, but, unlike Holiday, there is little chance Gordon will leave for the NBA after this season.
“There are going to be people who love (Holiday) and people who hate him,” Gordon said. “I think he’s doing a good job of just being Jrue.”
To some extent, Holiday has not been able to show his full potential this season because of the more experienced players on the Bruins’ roster and his position.
Howland has said he originally recruited Holiday to play point guard because he assumed Collison would leave school early for the NBA. When Collison returned, Holiday shifted to shooting guard.
Holiday said he would love to have the ball in his hands more next season so that he can create and distribute to other players.
“It’s hard to play to your ability when you have players like myself and Josh Shipp and Alfred, a lot of seniors on the team that need attention,” Collison said. “When it’s his team … he’s going to understand that he has to be the man.”
Gordon said Holiday has “a lot more under his belt” and he believes Holiday will return for a sophomore season.
Holiday typically avoids any questions about his future or his potential draft position. He said it’s just a part of his personality not to worry about others or fret over long-term plans.
“This is my season now, it’s not time for me to sit down (to think),” he said. “I have to take advantage of what’s happening now.”
Holiday will be crucial to UCLA’s success in the NCAA tournament, which begins Thursday in Philadelphia against Virginia Commonwealth. He replaced Collison at point guard during the semifinal loss to USC, and if Collison’s tailbone injury does not improve, Holiday may be asked to play more minutes at that position.
Holiday has been talking to Collison about the intensity of March basketball and how hard it is to reach the Final Four. Holiday attended the Bruins’ second-round game last year in Anaheim and witnessed a dramatic battle between the Bruins and Texas A&M. The Bruins barely won, 51-49.
“I saw that game and I was like, “˜I want to play in a game like that,'” Holiday said.
With all that anticipation and excitement, there isn’t much time for Holiday to think about decisions that lie ahead this spring before the June 25 NBA Draft.
“I’m having fun here,” he said. “I love being here and I love college basketball. That’s what I’m focusing on right now.”