Joe Mazzulla belted at his 19-year-old rookie.
Without missing a beat, Hugo Gonzalez sprinted over to his head coach and locked in, nodding profusely at Mazzulla’s instructions. Whichever pointer or correction Mazzulla wanted to share on the sidelines, Gonzalez was eager to listen, and ready to course-correct.
“I just enjoy coaching him,” Mazzulla said. “Because of his personality, how he carries himself.”
In his Celtics preseason debut, Gonzalez tallied 8 points on 3-4 shooting, 3 rebounds, and 3 blocks. He had some spectacular moments — most memorably, a steal that led to a throwdown dunk and a stunning chasedown block — but also showed some expected flashes of inexperience.
Each time he “messed up” — whether a missed offensive read or blown defensive coverage — he almost instinctively looked over at Mazzulla.
And, whenever Mazzulla called his name, Hugo was all ears.
“As a 19-year-old playing his first game in the NBA, I got a lot of things to correct,” Gonzalez said. “He was just trying to give me some advice, some feedback — on things that I need to improve, some reads that I didn’t do well.”
Gonzalez, drafted 28th overall in June, has far less basketball experience than any other player on the Celtics. However, despite being a 19-year-old rookie, as he reminded reporters postgame, he comes to the Celtics with experience from Real Madrid, one of the best basketball clubs in Europe, and a level of professionalism that was evident since his first media availability.
“He’s been coached by some great coaches, and he’s been a part of a great organization for a long time,” Mazzulla said. “So, he knows how to play. He’s smart. He holds himself to a high standard. I enjoy coaching him because he listens, he wants to get better, he learns, and he pushes himself.”
And, in his 18 minutes of game action, Gonzalez showed flashes of the NBA player he can become — and affirmed why the Celtics used their first-round pick on such a relatively unproven player.
After drilling pregame three-pointer after pregame three-pointer, Gonzalez sank his first attempt from beyond the arc. But even more notable was his success on the defensive end; Gonzalez tallied 3 blocks and devoured loose balls.
That defense helped power a fast-paced offense that the Celtics will look to maintain all season long.
“It’s everything,” Gonzalez said. “If you defend, you’re able to run. Everybody on this team wants to run…That’s what we’re looking for. So, as soon as we have the defense up there, when we are able to run, we’re gonna be really, really dangerous.”
On one occasion, Gonzalez intercepted a pass at halfcourt, then zoomed down the court for a ferocious slam. The Celtics’ bench went berserk on the sidelines, seemingly incredulous at the teenager’s hops.
“I thought he made some big plays tonight,” Mazzulla said.
Mazzulla will continue to coach up Gonzalez throughout the preseason, and Gonzalez will continue to take the feedback in and try his best to correct mistakes in real time. That’s the value of lower-stakes preseason basketball, and it’s a learning opportunity that neither player nor coach will take for granted.
“You need to think fast,” Gonzalez said. “Try to apply whatever they’re telling you, because they’re seeing it from a better perspective than you.”
Most will remember the rookie’s highlight plays — particularly on the defensive end — but Gonzalez will remember one thing from his first game in a Celtics uniform.
“We got the win,” Gonzalez said. “That was the most important thing.”
