Celtics reportedly trading for Jrue Holiday; Malcolm Brogdon, Robert Williams to Trail Blazers

Less than one week after the Bucks became NBA title favorites with the seismic deal that sent All-Star guard Damian Lillard to Milwaukee, the Celtics on Sunday struck back, acquiring All-Star point guard Jrue Holiday from Portland, a league source confirmed.

The source said Boston is trading Malcolm Brogdon, center Robert Williams, the Warriors’ 2024 first-round pick that was previously acquired, and the Celtics 2029 first-round pick.

Celtics ownership has given a clear directive to the front office to do whatever it takes to win the franchise’s first title since 2008, and this move is a loud step in that direction. Boston can now unfurl a starting five of Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, Al Horford, Kristaps Porzingis, and Holiday that should be considered the league’s best.

Holiday was part of the three-team deal last week that sent Lillard to the Bucks, and Portland made it known it had no intention of keeping the veteran guard who did not fit its youth movement. This ignited a flurry of trade activity from interested teams around the league, but Celtics president of basketball operations Brad Stevens turned out to be the closer.

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Holiday, 33, averaged 19.3 points, 6.8 assists and 4.5 rebounds per game for the Bucks last season. He will make $36.9 million this season and has a $39.4 player option for next year. Holiday, a first-team All-Defense selection last year, instantly fortifies a unit that appeared a bit wobbly following the departure of 2022 Defensive Player of the Year Marcus Smart. He is also known as a well-respected leader and will have an important voice in Boston’s locker room.

Although Portland was mostly seeking draft capital, the Celtics needed to send back nearly $34 million in salary for matching purposes, so it was clear that any trade would result in a substantial hit to the regular roster, too.

The departure of Williams is the most notable. The 25-year-old big man is tremendously athletic and has shown flashes of dominance, but his career has also been hampered by injuries. He appeared in just 35 games last year, averaging 8 points and 8.3 rebounds per contest. There is a belief around the league that he could become one of the NBA’s dominant big men if he can stay healthy for an extended period, but that has been a challenge.

Brogdon’s Celtics tenure, meanwhile, ends after one excellent year that was marred by a sour ending. After being acquired in a trade with the Pacers, he embraced his bench role all season and was named the league’s Sixth Man of the Year.

But he was slowed by a forearm strain during the conference finals against the Heat, missing one game and going just 1 for 16 from the field over his final four. In June, Brogdon was part of the initial three-team trade that would bring Porzingis to Boston, but the Clippers backed out because they did not have sufficient time to examine Brogdon’s injury.

The Celtics then pivoted and traded Smart to the Grizzlies in the three-team deal, but Brogdon was reportedly frustrated by his inclusion in the initial trade as well as the way Boston handled his injury. Over the past few weeks, the team’s social media accounts posted numerous videos of players working out at the Auerbach Center to prepare for the season, and Brogdon was the only one who never made an appearance.

While the Celtics have a fearsome starting five, and can now bring All-Defense pick Derrick White, a star of last season’s playoffs, off the bench, there are some depth concerns. The regular rotation, as it stands now, will likely include Sam Hauser, Payton Pritchard, Luke Kornet, and Oshae Brissett.

Given the firepower at the top, that should be a perfectly suitable second unit, and the Celtics have another roster spot to fill. But there will not be much room for error with injuries.

Adam Himmelsbach can be reached at adam.himmelsbach@globe.com. Follow him @adamhimmelsbach.