{"id":202685,"date":"2025-10-10T10:11:03","date_gmt":"2025-10-10T10:11:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/202685\/"},"modified":"2025-10-10T10:11:03","modified_gmt":"2025-10-10T10:11:03","slug":"celtics-mailbag-will-hugo-gonzalez-be-a-surprise-contributor-immediately","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/202685\/","title":{"rendered":"Celtics Mailbag: Will Hugo Gonzalez be a surprise contributor immediately?"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Celtics<\/a>\u2019 preseason opener featured plenty of bright spots from Josh Minott<\/a> to Hugo Gonzalez<\/a>. How will those new pieces fit in once the regular season begin? Let\u2019s discuss it all and more in this week\u2019s mailbag.<\/p>\n

After last year\u2019s knee issues – a healthy Tillman almost feels like another off-season addition. Do you think he will be \u201cload managed\u201d similar to Horford to manage health? \u2014 Joel V <\/p>\n

I don\u2019t think the team will need to load manage him like Horford since they won\u2019t be using him as much. Neemias Queta remains the favorite to start at center and while Tillman looks like he will be a factor in the rotation, it\u2019s hard to envision him getting upwards of 20 minutes a night at center or in double big lineups. That type of workload shouldn\u2019t require load management when Tillman is healthy. That equation changes if his knee situation starts flaring up but he\u2019s been open about feeling like he\u2019s got a clean bill of health right now. <\/p>\n

Incredibly, Tillman is only 27-years-old despite it feeling like he\u2019s the old man on this roster now after Horford\u2019s departure. He\u2019s never played over 20 minutes per game in his career but he\u2019s probably the most accomplished big on the roster right now outside of Chris Boucher. He\u2019s also entering a contract year so taking care of his body will certainly be a big priority for him and the organization. Regardless, he\u2019s not going to be on the floor enough to make load management a concern, which will be a potential silver lining of all the roster changes. <\/p>\n

Tell me everything I need to know about Hugo!! \u2014 AJ<\/p>\n

The rookie is going to earn a lot of fans at TD Garden if he keeps up the defensive motor that we saw on Wednesday night. Offensively, he\u2019s going to be a work in progress but a wing defender with good size and strength is a welcome addition on any team but especially encouraging for a 19-year-old. Given how wide open the bench rotation is at wing, it\u2019s fair to wonder how he\u2019s going to fare against the likes of Jordan Walsh and Baylor Scheierman in Joe Mazzulla\u2019s mind once the preseason ends. Those guys have the experience edge but Gonzalez\u2019s upside already looks more intriguing through Summer League and a couple weeks of training camp. <\/p>\n

That entire trio should continue to see regular minutes throughout the rest of the preseason, although Jordan Walsh\u2019s adductor strain may have opened the door for Gonzalez to earn a potential role once the regular season begins. If not, I\u2019d expect him to get plenty of reps in Maine once the G-League season opens up. <\/p>\n

What\u2019s your opinion of Baylor\u2019s game Wednesday night? \u2014 Paul D<\/p>\n

A bit of a mixed bag but I thought the good outweighed the bad on the whole. He brought good energy throughout with his work on the offensive glass and forcing the issue defensively (two turnovers). He remains a bit trigger happy with the 3-point shoot and his finishing around the basket continues to need some work but he was still the most effective scoring weapon off the bench with 13 points. He ranks third for now in my wing depth chart off the bench behind Josh Minott and Hugo Gonzalez based on their preseason opener outings. <\/p>\n

Hello Brian. How many different lineups should Joe try, vs maybe building the chemistry of a starting and bench unit? \u2014CsFanMan<\/p>\n

I think you are going to continue to see a lot of mixing and matching throughout the preseason since that\u2019s what is gonna to be required on a nightly basis this year. This roster has its limitations so the team is going to have to adjust to matchups on a nightly basis rather than sticking with a set rotation like we saw the last two years. The talent edge simply isn\u2019t there anymore across the board and Joe Mazzulla will adapt to that. Additionally, with three games in five nights to begin the preseason, look for other regulars (Jaylen Brown, Derrick White, Sam Hauser) to get a night off at some point, which will create more mixing and matching. There will be a dry run at some point with the rotation in the preseason but seeing how different lineups look in a competitive setting will be useful for the coaching staff.<\/p>\n

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