[Forsberg] Hugo Gonzalez by the numbers: Inside the rookie’s early impact with Celtics
December 22, 2025
[Forsberg] Hugo Gonzalez by the numbers: Inside the rookie’s early impact with Celtics
5 comments
From Chris Forsberg:
**+19.9**
That’s the team-best net rating the Celtics have posted during Gonzalez’s 305 minutes of court time. The number that pops: Boston’s defensive rating plummets to a team-best 103 with Gonzalez on the court, or 11.7 points per 100 possessions better than the team’s season average.
**+111**
That’s the raw number that Boston has outscored opponents by this season with Gonzalez on the court, which is best among all rookies. Gonzalez is comfortably ahead of Philadelphia’s VJ Edgecombe (+94) and San Antonio’s Dylan Harper (+80), both of whom were top-three draft picks.
**3 percent**
That’s the percentage of defensive plays that Gonzalez is generating steals on, which ranks in the 98th percentile among all wings, per Cleaning the Glass data. Only Oklahoma City’s Cason Wallace and Sacramento’s Keon Ellis have higher rates at that position. Gonzalez ranks in the top 10 in steal percentage among all positions.
**50 percent**
That’s our crude estimate on the percentage of time that Gonzalez has defended a former — or soon-to-be — All-Star this season. His most-frequent matchups read like an Eastern Conference All-Star ballot: Cade Cunningham, Franz Wagner, Bam Adebayo, Brandon Ingram, Jalen Brunson, Karl-Anthony Towns, Scottie Barnes, Tyrese Maxey and Donovan Mitchell. He’s also taken turns against West stars like Lauri Markkanen, Kevin Durant, and Austin Reaves.
Over at BBall Index, they have Gonzalez graded at an A- for overall matchup difficulty (62nd out of 501 players) and an A+ in defensive positional versatility (9th out of 501 players). Gonzalez has spent nearly as much time on centers (18.5 percent) as he has defending shooting guards (22.6 percent).
He’s the sort of player that you would see on OKC and droll over
THE FORCE
Hitting on late draft picks is how great teams stay great. The Bucks & Warriors stink because they didn’t. The Celtics may have struck gold with Hugo. Long live Brad Stevens!
5 comments
From Chris Forsberg:
**+19.9**
That’s the team-best net rating the Celtics have posted during Gonzalez’s 305 minutes of court time. The number that pops: Boston’s defensive rating plummets to a team-best 103 with Gonzalez on the court, or 11.7 points per 100 possessions better than the team’s season average.
**+111**
That’s the raw number that Boston has outscored opponents by this season with Gonzalez on the court, which is best among all rookies. Gonzalez is comfortably ahead of Philadelphia’s VJ Edgecombe (+94) and San Antonio’s Dylan Harper (+80), both of whom were top-three draft picks.
**3 percent**
That’s the percentage of defensive plays that Gonzalez is generating steals on, which ranks in the 98th percentile among all wings, per Cleaning the Glass data. Only Oklahoma City’s Cason Wallace and Sacramento’s Keon Ellis have higher rates at that position. Gonzalez ranks in the top 10 in steal percentage among all positions.
**50 percent**
That’s our crude estimate on the percentage of time that Gonzalez has defended a former — or soon-to-be — All-Star this season. His most-frequent matchups read like an Eastern Conference All-Star ballot: Cade Cunningham, Franz Wagner, Bam Adebayo, Brandon Ingram, Jalen Brunson, Karl-Anthony Towns, Scottie Barnes, Tyrese Maxey and Donovan Mitchell. He’s also taken turns against West stars like Lauri Markkanen, Kevin Durant, and Austin Reaves.
Over at BBall Index, they have Gonzalez graded at an A- for overall matchup difficulty (62nd out of 501 players) and an A+ in defensive positional versatility (9th out of 501 players). Gonzalez has spent nearly as much time on centers (18.5 percent) as he has defending shooting guards (22.6 percent).
[Read more here](https://www.nbcsportsboston.com/nba/boston-celtics/hugo-gonzalez-stats-highlights-rookies/755653/).
Spanish Kawhi
He’s the sort of player that you would see on OKC and droll over
THE FORCE
Hitting on late draft picks is how great teams stay great. The Bucks & Warriors stink because they didn’t. The Celtics may have struck gold with Hugo. Long live Brad Stevens!