101 Greats of European Basketball

The golden Russian
The case of Jon Robert “J.R.” Holden is not
the first nor the last to confirm a rule of
life: it’s not how you start, but how you
finish. What’s also true is that his pro
career was unusual because of many
things. His path to glory was neither fast
nor easy. Holden, who was born on August 10, 1976,
in Pittsburgh, had to go step by step, from third-level
clubs to the elite; from countries with no basketball
tradition to a world power in the sport, which he led to
a new European crown after a long wait.
After four years in Bucknell University, where he averaged
17.8 and 18.1 points in the last two, Holden was not
drafted into the NBA. In fact, his future looked unlikely
to involve basketball at all. But as often happens, chance
would change his life. A Finnish agent offered Holden a
tryout with ASK Broceni Riga, a team that existed for just
10 seasons total, between 1992 and 2001. Many years
later, when remembering the start of his European adventure,
Holden admitted he had problems locating Latvia
on a map. He had no clue about the country, and he
went there for 400 dollars a week. He is still grateful to
Larry Daniels, who also played for Riga, and who helped
him a lot during his first days there. In the 1998-99 season,
ASK Broceni played in Belgrade against Partizan and
won 89-87 with 18 points and 4 assists from Holden.
After winning the Latvian League title, Holden switched
countries and signed for Telindus Ostend in Belgium.
In the 2000-01 FIBA SuproLeague, he would again play
Partizan in Belgrade. This time, Partizan prevailed 89-80
thanks to 38 points by Miroslav Beric. But Holden netted
30 points, confirming the impression he had left the previous
season. He was a talented player who deserved to
play on a more powerful team.
Explosion in AEK
After a couple of conversations with Vlade Divac,
who then was a player for the Sacramento Kings but also
the president of Partizan, Holden was really close to
signing for the team, but eventually he would stay one
more season at Ostend. In the summer of 2001, after
winning the Belgian League and Belgian Cup, his next
stop was Athens, Greece, but the club was the humble
AEK. Humble? Maybe because of the budget, especially
if compared to Panathinaikos or Olympiacos, but not
for its history and a group of excellent players Holden
found there. Head coach Dragan Sakota had with him
Dimos Dikoudis, Michalis Kakiouzis, Nikos Chatzis,
Nikos Zisis, Jim Bilba, Andy Betts and Holden, a huge
Holden. The result? AEK won the Greek League, the
only title that Panathinaikos didn’t win between 1998
and 2011. Coach Sakota tells us about what happened:
“We had not played against Holden; his signing was
the result of general scouting. We looked at several
players and I concluded that Holden would be the one
who would contribute more. Officially, the MVP of the
season was Dikoudis, but Holden was the most consistent
player. He was irreplaceable.”
Sakota highlights a feature by Holden that not many
people know.
“He was a relentless player. At the beginning of the
season, some people criticized me for having him 35 to
40 minutes on the court, but his body just didn’t need
any rest. He was able to play at the same intensity all
the time. In a technical sense, his best weapon was his
speed and, after that, his fighting character. He was not
101 greats of european basketball
Jon Robert Holden
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