**WALTHAM, Mass. —** During a brief moment at **Hugo González’** basketball camp at Brandeis University, the second he hosted in the US since joining the Celtics from Spain last summer, he stared through the window into the gym while awaiting an interview with _CLNS Media_ in a room down the hallway. He couldn’t look away from the court.
González’ perfectionism served him well on the way to a role with the Celtics that exceeded anyone’s expectation at 20-years-old. He famously said he won’t carry a great memory from his NBA debut, because Boston lost — a [now memed moment](https://www.instagram.com/p/DQPj_oJCYAy/). It allowed **Joe Mazzulla** to coach him tough, and led to many moments through his first season where he beat himself up. That approach carried over to the Spanish national team last month, where he scored seven points on 2-for-8 shooting in losses to teammate **Neemias Queta** and Portugal, then Greece.
“I think I need to play way better,” González told _CLNS_. “Were (they) my best two games? Not even close with Spain these last two. You gotta get some downs to get up again, and I’m really excited to get started soon and being back here is the main thing.”
A second Celtics training camp looms later this month with a new apartment for González, who traveled home to Spain twice to play in FIBA World Cup qualifiers — starting stronger in the July session with 25 points, seven rebounds, seven assists and four steals on 8-for-17 shooting. He immediately joined the Celtics in Las Vegas for Summer League after, leaping across nine hours in time zones. There, he led the offense while Boston’s coaching staff urged him to expand his game. All those responsibilities left him moving just weeks from the preseason.
So his childhood friends Alex Popescu and Raul Nieto surprised him in Boston last week to help. When González emerged from his interview to continue the camp, they stood waiting for him in the hallway, ready to share smiles and laughs. Popescu and Nieto focus on lightening the mood around González, who they watched train continuously and span the globe to continue playing basketball after a long rookie season. They point him toward his hobbies — balón, soccer and video games.
“I think we’re gonna have a long and hard training camp for sure, but really excited, looking forward to it, getting back on the wheel of games and travels and everything,” González said. “You don’t really like it when you’re in the season, but then you stay in the place for two months and you feel like you want to travel again, and you want to play and you want to compete. I’m really looking forward to it.”
González was also excited about another year living in Boston, something uncertain as the Celtics weighed offseason changes that reportedly included a pursuit of Bucks superstar **Giannis Antetokounmpo**. The Bucks, according to Shams Charania, wanted González, **Baylor** **Scheierman**, and additional players and assets beyond **Jaylen Brown** and the two first-rounders that Boston offered in their unsuccessful Antetokounmpo pursuit. González, in Las Vegas, later reflected that trade rumors come with the territory as an NBA player.
The situation for González differed from the trade rumors many face in the league. While Brown and others this summer heard their name shopped, the Celtics wanted to retain González as part of an ongoing youth movement on the roster that began last year. González said he never received a message from the team following the report, but didn’t need one. His friends sensed that he wanted to remain with the Celtics, and they followed the saga closely hoping for the same result.
“I wouldn’t be the first person to get traded or the last person to get traded,” González said. “It’s something that you gotta know when you get to the NBA, when you get to the league, that your contract can be traded and it’s part of the business too. So you gotta realize that you can’t control it actually, so let the time happen and just see what happens … We’re working for the same thing. We’re working for winning. They know that I’m gonna have the confidence to win and the courage to be working 100% hard every day, so that’s it.”
González received support from head coach **Joe Mazzulla** in Spain during the days leading up to the Miami Heat securing a deal for Antetokounmpo. Mazzulla and his family watched González compete in the July qualifying session, defeating Denmark and losing by two against Georgia. González showed Mazzulla where he’s from and appreciated his presence, [one of numerous trips Mazzulla took to support and connect with Celtics players this summer](https://www.celticsblog.com/boston-celtics-news/143317/joe-mazzulla-hugo-gonzalez-neemias-queta). González was also impressed with the coach’s Spanish-speaking, which they built into their relationship throughout last season. Mazzulla had defended González when a report erroneously indicated he had struggled with English during the NBA transition.
The on-court fit, instead, occurred seamlessly after he adjusted to the league’s terminology, pace and packed schedule, with far more games and travel each week than the ACB and EuroLeague, where he competed with Real Madrid. González led all rookies in +/-, became a rotation fixture for the Celtics and never appeared in Maine, where Boston’s prospects often spend time developing during their first season.
The team had opportunities for young wings to emerge with **Jayson Tatum** missing most of the season, and similar opportunities remain following the **Jaylen Brown** trade in July. González doesn’t begin the year anticipating any role, but rather spent time assessing any part of his game that the team could need. They’re building mentality, beginning this season on the same page, more than anything else.
“Just keep doing the right thing,” he said. “Keep making the best decision available and I would just say the decision-making, so I can impact better on both sides of the floor and just know that I can help the team in a lot of ways, just making the right decision every time, a lot of times in a row, it will be the thing that I want to improve.”