Bucks’ Holiday one of NBA’s elite thieves on defense

The Milwaukee Bucks knew they were getting an elite defender when they traded for guard Jrue Holiday on Nov. 24.

Holiday, already a two-time member of the All-NBA Defensive team, continues to make strides on defense.

Through 29 contests this season, the 30-year-old guard is averaging 1.8 steals per game, which ranks second in the NBA and would best his previous career high of 1.6. Holiday also ranks fourth in the NBA in steal percentage (2.7%).

It marks the 12th straight season Holiday has collected at least one steal per game, which is tied for the fifth-longest active streak in the NBA.

LeBron James has 18 straight campaigns with 1+ steal per game, followed by Phoenix’s Chris Paul (16), Chicago’s Thaddeus Young (13) and Washington’s Russell Westbrook (13).

Golden State guard Steph Curry and Brooklyn’s James Harden also have 12 straight seasons of 1+ steal per game.

Holiday has 19 contests this year with multiple steals, which is tied with rookie LaMelo Ball and Denver’s Nikola Jokic for the most in the NBA. In games in which Holiday notches at least three steals, the Bucks are a perfect 7-0.

On Wednesday night, one of Holiday’s former teams — the Philadelphia 76ers — host Milwaukee for the first time this season. The two teams stand 2.5 games apart in the Eastern Conference, with Philadelphia (28-12) owning the top spot, while Milwaukee (25-14) is nipping at their heels in third place.

Milwaukee has won the season series in each of the past two seasons, coming away victories in four of its last six regular-season meetings.

The magic number for the Bucks-Sixers matchup is 110. If Milwaukee holds its opponent to under 110 points, the Bucks are a perfect 14-0. If the 76ers can stave off a team from scoring 110 points, Philadelphia is 17-1.

The game between the Bucks and Sixers will be televised on FOX Sports Wisconsin, with “Bucks Live” beginning at 5:30 p.m.

Statistics courtesy Sportradar