Hugo Gonzalez’s debut included frustrating moments — and a ton of promise

LAS VEGAS — Late in the second quarter of his NBA Summer League debut, Hugo Gonzalez was visibly displeased.

The 19-year-old Celtics rookie had just gone 1 for 5 from the free-throw line, and summer league head coach Matt Reynolds yelled encouraging words at him from the sideline:

“There’s plenty of game left!”

Gonzalez didn’t necessarily have a bad start — his game began with a putback layup, which he immediately followed with a deflection.

But the missed free throws stuck.

“I’m not allowing myself to miss like I did today,” Gonzalez said. “When I’m getting upset because of today’s game, it’s because of the free-throw line.”

All in all, Gonzalez was solid in his debut game — he finished with 12 points, 5 assists, and 4 rebounds. And, defensively, Gonzalez was relentless, pressuring the ball and tallying two blocks and a steal.

“That was an excellent tone that he and our backcourt set throughout the course of the game,” said Reynolds.

Reynolds also praised Gonzalez’s decision-making, noting that the Spanish rookie made several good reads that didn’t translate in points.

“I thought that he created some advantages that we didn’t capitalize on, some that he might have just had a tough roll around the rim or a kick out that we missed, but I thought he was really composed down the stretch,” said the Celtics coach.

For Gonzalez, the debut was a challenging one, with the pace, in particular, posing an adjustment.

“It was hard,” he said. “I was feeling actually quite tired, but you gotta fight against that.”

But there weren’t any nerves, he explained, pointing to his breadth of professional experience and time playing in Europe. And, as he fielded questions in both English and Spanish, he came off as a pro.

Teammates have been impressed with the rookie so far. Center Charles Bassey, who was a late addition to the Celtics’ Summer League roster and is entering his fifth NBA season, pointed to an offensive bag that Gonzalez didn’t necessarily showcase in his debut.

“He loves that Euro step floater,” Bassey said. “I’ve never seen anybody block it. I tried to block it — I couldn’t. He’s a good player.”

The Celtics came away with a 92-78 victory in their first Summer League game. Ultimately, that’s what was most important to Gonzalez.

“I think that we performed really well,” Gonzalez said. “We won the game; that was the main objective. Before thinking of individual stuff and everything, we won the game. That’s what we’re here for.”

But he was stuck on the free throws.

“I’m not allowing myself to do that again.”