Hugo Gonzalez may have found the kind of chip on his shoulder that can matter once the real games start.
The Boston Celtics wing is expected to have a larger role in Year 2, and he already looked like a player ready for more during his rookie season. His energy jumped off the floor, but what really stood out was how NBA-ready he seemed right away. Now he has another reason to push for a leap: he got left off the league’s All-Summer League teams after an encouraging run in Las Vegas.
The 2026 NBA All-Summer League First Team included Cameron Boozer, Brayden Burries, Yaxel Lendeborg, Meleek Thomas and Caleb Wilson.
The 2026 NBA All-Summer League Second Team featured Cedric Coward, Egor Dёmin, Khaman Maluach, Liam McNeeley and Zyon Pullin.
The teams were selected by a vote of all 30 NBA teams based on performance at Summer League in Las Vegas, and Gonzalez wasn’t among the honorees. Neither was anyone else on Boston’s roster.
That omission is hardly a crushing blow in the grand scheme of things. It’s Summer League, after all, and plenty of other young players made enough noise to earn the recognition. Still, Gonzalez did show real growth in his second Summer League appearance, especially compared with a first run that wasn’t nearly as strong.
The shot was the issue. His inconsistency there likely played a big part in why he didn’t get the nod.
Even so, this is the kind of slight that can stick with a young player. Boston is heading into a season where everyone will be asked to do more with Jaylen Brown gone, and Gonzalez could be one of the players most affected by that shift.
He already showed last season that he can be a difference-maker. Now he has a chance to prove it on a bigger stage, and this snub only adds another layer to the motivation.
That opportunity comes after a stretch in which Gonzalez had to fight for his place. He started his NBA career well and steadily earned Joe Mazzulla’s trust over the course of the season. But once Jayson Tatum returned, somebody was going to lose minutes, and Gonzalez was the one who got squeezed.
As Tatum took back his spot as Boston’s top option, Gonzalez’s playing time faded to the point that he wasn’t even part of the playoff rotation. Then Tatum’s knee injury opened the door again in Game 7 against Philadelphia, and Gonzalez wasted little time showing why he belonged back on the floor.
His late-season benching, the Brown trade creating a void, and now the All-Summer League snub all line up as possible fuel for a breakout year. Boston asked him to play the right way last season, and he did. With a more important role coming, Gonzalez may have just been handed the exact motivation he needed.
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