Jon Robert Holden facts for kids
| Detroit Pistons | |||||||||||
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| Front office executive | |||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||
| Born | August 10, 1976 Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
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| Nationality | American / Russian | ||||||||||
| High school |
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| Listed height | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | ||||||||||
| Listed weight | 185 lb (84 kg) | ||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||
| College | Bucknell (1994–1998) | ||||||||||
| NBA Draft | 1998 / Undrafted | ||||||||||
| Pro career | 1998–2011 | ||||||||||
| League | NBA | ||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||
| 1998–1999 | ASK Brocēni | ||||||||||
| 1999–2001 | Telindus Oostende | ||||||||||
| 2001–2002 | AEK | ||||||||||
| 2002–2011 | CSKA Moscow | ||||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||||
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Jon Robert "J.R." Holden is a famous American-Russian former professional basketball player. He was born on August 10, 1976. Today, he works as a basketball executive for the Detroit Pistons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Before this, he was the director of player personnel for the Brooklyn Nets.
Holden was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He is 6 feet 1 inch tall. He played as a point guard or shooting guard, but mostly as a point guard.
While playing for CSKA Moscow, Holden won two EuroLeague championships. These big wins happened in 2006 and 2008. He also reached the EuroLeague Final Four eight times in a row. This is a record he shares with his former teammate, Theo Papaloukas. Because he was so good for so long, he was chosen for the EuroLeague Basketball 2000–10 All-Decade Team.
He also played for the Russian national basketball team. He helped Russia win their first ever gold medal in the FIBA EuroBasket tournament in 2007.
Contents
Early Life and College Basketball
High School Years
J.R. Holden played basketball in high school at two different schools. He attended Wilkinsburg High School in Wilkinsburg, Pennsylvania. He also played at Linsly School in Wheeling, West Virginia.
Playing for Bucknell University
After high school, Holden went to Bucknell University. He played NCAA Division I college basketball for the Bucknell Bison. He played there from 1994 to 1998.
Professional Basketball Career
Starting in Europe
After finishing college at Bucknell, Holden got an exciting offer. A basketball club in Riga, Latvia, called ASK/Brocēni/LMT, wanted him to join their team. They offered him $3,000 a month. He said yes, and this started his long and successful career in European basketball.
Playing for Top Teams
Holden played for many teams in different countries.
- He played in the Latvian Basketball League for ASK/Brocēni/LMT from 1998 to 1999.
- Then he moved to the Belgian League with Telindus Oostende from 1999 to 2001.
- After that, he played in the Greek Basket League for AEK Athens from 2001 to 2002.
- Finally, he joined CSKA Moscow in the Russian Superleague A from 2002 to 2011.
He won national championships in every country he played in. In 2003, a website called Eurobasket.com named him the Russian Superleague A Player of the Year. He also won the EuroLeague championship in 2006 and 2008 with CSKA Moscow.
In October 2006, Holden played for CSKA Moscow against the Philadelphia 76ers. This was an exhibition game in Cologne, Germany. It was part of a special event called EA Sports NBA Europe Live 2006.
Playing for Russia
Winning the EuroBasket Championship
One of Holden's biggest achievements was in the FIBA EuroBasket 2007 final game. Russia was playing against Spain. With only 2 seconds left in the game, Holden scored the winning shot. This amazing shot gave Russia the championship title. It was Russia's first gold medal in that tournament.
Olympic Games
Holden was also chosen to play for the Russian team in the 2008 Beijing Olympics men's basketball tournament.
Life After Playing Basketball
After he stopped playing professional basketball, J.R. Holden became a scout. He worked for NBA teams like the Detroit Pistons and the Philadelphia 76ers.
As of 2025, he is the Director of Player Personnel for the Brooklyn Nets in the NBA. This means he helps decide which players the team should get.
Personal Life
On October 20, 2003, Holden became a Russian citizen. This happened because President Vladimir Putin signed a special order. This change was important because new rules in the Russian Basketball Federation limited how many foreign players, especially Americans, could be on Russian teams.
To help CSKA Basketball, their CEO Sergei Kushchenko came up with the idea for Holden to get Russian citizenship. The mayor of Moscow, Yury Luzhkov, and the Russian State Sports Committee supported this idea. Today, Holden has dual citizenship, meaning he is a citizen of both America and Russia.
In an interview in September 2012, Holden said that Dušan Ivković is one of the best basketball coaches ever.
Jon is married to Aireka Holden. They live in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. They have a daughter and a son.
Awards and Accomplishments
Team Championships
- Latvian League Champion: 1999
- Belgian League Champion: 2001
- Belgian Cup Winner: 2001
- Greek League Champion: 2002
- 9× Russian Championship Champion: 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011
- 4× Russian Cup Winner: 2005, 2006, 2007, 2010
- 2× EuroLeague Champion: 2006, 2008
National Team Medals
- FIBA EuroBasket Gold Medal: 2007
Individual Awards
- Greek League All-Star: 2002
- Eurobasket.com website's Russian Super League Player of the Year: 2003
- EuroLeague Finals Top Scorer: 2009
- VTB United League Final Four MVP: 2010
- EuroLeague 2000–2010 All-Decade Team: 2010
- (2025 Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame International Basketball Nominee)
See also
In Spanish: Jon Robert Holden para niños
