However, some fans were worried about Holiday.

After all, Holiday was originally traded from the Pelicans to the Mavericks.

Anyone would have some thoughts about that.

The trade was officially announced a day later, and Holiday arrived in New Orleans the next day.

It had been more than two years since he last played for the Pelicans, and the team had changed a lot in those two years.

Jokic, who was traded to the Mavericks with him, went to the Nuggets, Ariza joined the Kings on a one-year contract last summer, and Tang Tian retired.

Of the people who played with him on the Pelicans, only Davis and head coach Stevens remained.

When Stevens took him to the locker room, Davis was the first to get up and greet him.

Holiday had played for the Pelicans for three years and was a teammate with Davis for three years, so the relationship between the two was still very good.

He greeted everyone one by one. After two years of returning to a familiar place, he still had many feelings in his heart.

"Jrue."

Just as he walked to the closet to organize his things, a familiar voice appeared behind him.

He turned around and saw Tang Tian's familiar face.

Because he wasn't playing basketball anymore, that face looked a little fatter.

"Tang."

Holiday smiled and reached out to hug Tang Tian.

Then, he encountered the first head-touch of his Pelicans career.

He dodged the first day, but not the fifteenth.

But Holiday was very happy at this time.

Of the Pelicans back then, the person he had the best relationship with was Tang Tian.

The two of them practiced together, improved together, and even got massages together.

Of course, most importantly, Tang Tian's reminder back then allowed his wife's cancer to be cured, which was more than just basketball.

"Ready to win a lot more championships for this team?"

Tang Tian said with a smile.

Holiday nodded. Compared to Dallas, where white people were supreme, he was more used to life in New Orleans.

As for some fans worrying that he minded the trade, that didn't exist.

His diligence wasn't because he was stupid, but because he knew exactly how much money he was making.

If he had a job worth nearly $20 million and still cared about being traded, then in his opinion, that would be stupid.

What's more, in reality, his situation wasn't good in the Mavericks, and he was still the third leader when he returned to the Pelicans.

So there was nothing bad about it.

If possible, he also hoped to renew his contract with the Pelicans next summer and stay here for a long time.

The day after Holiday returned to the Pelicans, the Pelicans hosted the Kings at home.

This was also the first game between the two teams after the trade deadline.

Both teams had major changes at the deadline, and this game was also crucial for both sides.

Tang Tian also came to the sidelines to cheer for the team in this game.

Stevens didn't arrange for Holiday to start this game, but he let Durant return to the three position.

Alexander and Brogdon on the outside, Durant and Davis on the forward line, and Gasol at center.

On the Kings side, D'Aaron Fox and Buddy Hield on the outside, Wiggins and Marvin Bagley on the forward line, and Dedmon at center.

After the game started, Fox of the Kings played quite bravely, and Wiggins' improvement to the Kings' talent was also obvious.

Barnes was conscientious, but relatively speaking, his ability to hold the ball and attack was average. Wiggins' arrival made up for this weakness of the Kings.

The two teams stalemated until the end of the quarter.

After entering the rotation, Bogdanovic, Bjelica, Cory Joseph, and Holmes on the Kings side, the strength of the rotation lineup was also not weak.

After the first quarter, the two teams tied at 28.

After watching the first quarter, Tang Tian knew that the Kings had definitely made a profit on this trade at the deadline.

According to this situation, it was highly likely that the Kings would exert their strength in the second half and return to the playoffs.

The starters and substitutes were deadlocked, and Stevens also made adjustments to the rotation.

He let Alexander play in advance during the substitute rotation stage of the second quarter.

When it came to the decisive moment of this quarter, he used Brogdon and Holiday on the guard line.

Holiday defended Fox, which was the only difference from the first quarter.

And it was this difference that changed the situation on the court.

After Fox came back, he played twice, once his pick-and-roll shot was interfered by Holiday and didn't go in, and once he was intercepted by Holiday after a strong breakthrough.

Compared with Alexander, Holiday was an upgraded version in all aspects except for a slightly weaker wingspan, especially in terms of defensive intensity and game experience.

He was able to secure a starting position in a championship-contending team, and his strength was there.

Fox was the engine of the Kings' offense. After he was cut off, the Kings' offense could only turn more to the inside.

However, the defense of the Pelicans' inside was only stronger than the outside, and the Kings' offensive efficiency obviously declined.

And with this decline, the score was slowly widened.

Stevens' adjustment also became the key to the game.

The Pelicans eventually defeated the Kings 106-92 to win the game.

Durant 34 points, Davis 24 points and 10 rebounds, Brogdon 13 points and 6 assists, Holiday 9 points, 3 assists and 2 steals.

Wiggins 24 points, Hield 21 points.

Fox made 5 of 7 shots in the first quarter, but he only scored 15 points on 7 of 17 shots in the whole game, and also had 3 turnovers.

This was Holiday's role.

In that Pelicans team back then, Holiday's defense had always been underestimated because of Tang Tian.

But this was actually where he was most powerful.

There were many guards who could score, but there were not many guards in today's league who could really defend from one to two.

Of course, more importantly, Durant finally didn't have to defend the guards, which allowed him to put more energy into the offensive end.

After this game, fans on both sides were also very happy.

They all saw the changes that the trade brought to the team, and were more confident in the games later in the season.

Two days later, the Pelicans challenged the Nuggets on the road.

Holiday was put into the starting lineup by Stevens in this game.

Holiday also repaid Stevens again. He limited Murray, the Nuggets' number one scorer on the outside, to only 13 points, and he also scored 11 points himself.

The Pelicans also successfully won the game and ushered in a winning streak.

After two days of rest, the Pelicans went to Dallas to challenge the Mavericks. This was also Holiday's first time facing his old club.

As a result, he played quite well, especially on the offensive end, where he finally found his form, hitting 4 three-pointers from the outside and scoring his first 20 points after returning to the Pelicans.

The Pelicans also defeated their opponents and continued their winning streak.

A very intuitive reality was that Holiday was very familiar with Stevens' tactical system and had completely integrated into it almost without any running-in.

Two days later, the Pelicans easily defeated the Thunder and entered the All-Star Game with a four-game winning streak.

For Pelicans fans, this was already the best possible result.

And next, it was their time to enjoy the annual All-Star Weekend.

It was worth mentioning that Tang Tian would participate in this year's All-Star Game as a member of the Celebrity Game.

For fans, this was undoubtedly a huge G-level benefit.