Aaron Holiday forges own path following siblings’ footsteps
Freshman guard Aaron Holiday joins UCLA men’s basketball as the fourth in a long lineage of basketball players. Holiday’s older brother Jrue and older sister Lauren played for UCLA, while his oldest brother Justin had a four-year career at Washington. (Courtesy of Don Liebig/UCLA)
By Claire Fahy
Nov. 13, 2015 1:36 a.m.
Aaron Holiday stood in the middle of an office in the J.D. Morgan Center, his 6-foot-1 frame cloaked in a grey Adidas tracksuit. The freshman guard pored over the UCLA men’s basketball media guide, studying the Bruins’ past season statistics as well as the scouting report on UCLA’s first season opponent: Monmouth.
His eyes widened as he read one specific stat. Looking at the top-25 rankings and the number of votes each team received for the national slots, Holiday shook his head.
“We got two?” he asked. “Damn.”
While unranked UCLA might not be an immediate national contender when it takes the floor Friday to open its 2016 campaign, Holiday looks to change those prospects moving forward. The freshman joins the Bruins as a top-100 recruit who averaged 25 points and 8.5 rebounds as a senior at Campbell Hall High School, leading the Vikings to their first regional championship appearance since 2008.
The guard knows a thing or two about success, taught by older siblings Justin, Jrue and Lauren – all of whom played college basketball. His two brothers play professionally in the NBA while Jrue’s wife, also Lauren, just won the World Cup with the U.S. women’s national soccer team.
When Aaron Holiday took his first steps onto John and Nell Wooden court two weeks ago for a preseason matchup with Cal State Los Angeles, the rookie felt right at home – clocking in as UCLA’s second-highest scorer with 16 points.
“The adjustment (to college) is going well,” Holiday said. “There’s obviously bigger guys, more athletic, different speed, different pace, but I think I’m doing well with the adjustments.”
Coach Steve Alford said he was unsure whether Holiday would continue as a starter, but the freshman’s work ethic in practices leading up to the preseason game convinced Alford to test him out in the lineup.
“He’s got a very good motor (and) that’s contagious,” Alford said. “(Junior guards) Isaac (Hamilton) and Bryce (Alford) and (Holiday) in the backcourt, I think, is a very good backcourt.”
The freshman takes pride in being what he calls “the fourth Holiday.” Jrue and sister Lauren both played basketball for UCLA, with Jrue graduating to the NBA after his first year. Holiday’s oldest brother, Justin, played at Washington before going on to play professionally in Europe and then winning a NBA championship with the Golden State Warriors last season.
As the fourth in this basketball lineage, Holiday picks up right where his siblings left off. While a senior at Campbell Hall, the guard won the Bishop Garver award – a recognition of the school’s top athlete – just as his three older siblings had.
Holiday said that putting on the UCLA jersey hasn’t drawn too many comparisons to his older brother aside from their looks. However, the two both joined the Bruins as highly-touted point guards and played largely off the ball due to the presence of experienced point guards existing on the roster.
“I don’t really listen to any of that because I know I’m not him,” Holiday said. “I’m my own person, so I just try to do what I know how to do best.”
A key difference in the brothers’ collegiate experiences is the respective teams’ coaching styles. While former men’s basketball coach Ben Howland advocated a slow-paced attack, Alford opts for a more up-tempo drive, which Holiday looks to fit into well.
“Running is a thing that we’re going to have to do, because we’ve got Aaron Holiday, and he’s a non-stop runner, so (we) just run with him. Wherever he goes I go, and that’s how it is,” said senior forward/center Tony Parker. “I try to keep up with him, which I don’t, but I try and it’s good for me to have a young, energetic energy bar running around all day. So it’s fun, and I think that’s big for our team – he brings a different aspect and he helps us run a lot more.”
Holiday said that the recruiting efforts by Alford have set the stage for a strong season. The freshman is joined by fellow four-star recruit guard Prince Ali, as well as three-star newcomer forward Alex Olesinski – all of whom impressed the coaching staff during preseason scrimmages.
Despite the hype, Holiday said he doesn’t get too many double-takes on campus.
“I don’t think people really will recognize me, cuz I’m not the tallest,” Holiday said. “I don’t think they’ll really notice.”
Once he takes the floor Friday in Pauley Pavilion, he might change some people’s minds.
