Celtics Rookie Already Facing Major Barrier in Adjusting to NBA

Mar 5, 2025; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; The Boston Celtics logo is seen on the court before the game between the Boston Celtics and the Portland Trail Blazers at TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: Winslow Townson-Imagn Images | Winslow Townson-Imagn Images

The Boston Celtics may just be a week into training camp, but they're already grappling with a minor hiccup.

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The team's top rookie, No. 28 draft pick Hugo Gonzalez of Real Madrid, is struggling to adjust to learning Celtics strategies in English, , per Souichi Terada of The Boston Globe.

Hugo Gonzalez is going through his first training camp as a rookie after the Celtics selected him in the first round in this year's draft. https://t.co/fSgkCxZDRc

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“We’re going really, really deep now in these practices and also in the training camp that we’ve got,” Gonzalez said. “We’re going deep in the details. I think that apart from the basics, they are the most important thing. We’re going into detail on every single situation so that when we are in the game and we’ve got that situation, we can handle it in the best way possible so we can succeed on defense.”

Because he's not learning plays in his native language, picking up all the nuances of various sets is proving a bit tougher for the 6-foot-7 swingman. It's not clear how much Gonzalez will actually play with this new Boston squad.

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Terada notes that previous non-lottery pick first-year Celtics wings Baylor Scheierman (the No. 30 pick last year) and Jordan Walsh (the No. 38 pick in 2023) were sent down to Boston's G League affiliate, the Maine Celtics, for portions of their rookie seasons to get some real minutes.

In 29 healthy Liga ACB contests for Real Madrid last season, he still suited up relatively sparingly, averaging 5.2 points on .444/.271/.773 shooting splits, 2.5 rebounds, 0.9 assists and 0.5 steals across 14.2 minutes per.

'Working on the Terminology'

"I have to put in a lot of effort, more than anyone who speaks English. I've got to be more attentive," the 19-year-old Spaniard said, per BasketNews. "As it's in English, I'm working on the terminology, I would say."

Gonzalez is already impressed by the effort and skillset of his new teammates, he revealed.

“In Europe, it’s different and here every single player has impressed me,” Gonzalez said, according to Terada. “I wouldn’t say impressed me because I know how good they are, but they have been practicing — everybody here — super hard. And practicing since the first minute at 100%. So I would say everybody.”

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