A Celtics wing was chosen to play within the 2026 Rising Stars recreation, however not the one you may count on.
Hugo Gonzalez, Boston’s high-energy, high-impact rookie, didn’t make the reduce for the annual young-player showcase, which might be held throughout NBA All-Star weekend in Los Angeles. Two-way participant Ron Harper Jr. will signify the Celtics on the occasion as considered one of seven G League gamers chosen.
Will probably be a chance for the 25-year-old Harper to compete alongside his youthful brother, San Antonio Spurs rookie Dylan Harper. They’re the sons of former NBA guard Ron Harper, who received 5 championships with the Chicago Bulls and Los Angeles Lakers within the Nineteen Nineties and early 2000s.
“Yeah, one, congrats to him,” Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla stated Monday after the Rising Stars roster was announced. “That’s sort of cool that they’ve a household that three of these guys are going to be collectively. I believe that’s fairly wonderful.”
Harper Jr., who parlayed a coaching camp tryout right into a two-way roster spot, has put up sturdy numbers for the Maine Celtics this season, averaging 24.4 factors, 4.7 rebounds, 3.4 assists, 1.2 steals and 1.1 blocks throughout 16 G League appearances. Most of his restricted taking part in time for Boston has are available rubbish time, however the Rutgers product made a shock early-game look in final Friday’s double-overtime win over Brooklyn, subbing in halfway via the primary quarter.
“To me, it’s simply belief,” Mazzulla stated of Harper, who’s additionally appeared in video games for Toronto and Detroit in his four-year NBA profession. “I watch him work out when he’s with us. The opposite aspect of that’s the professionalism. When he will get there early, he’s within the weight room doing what he’s presupposed to be doing. He’s within the therapy room if he must be. He communicates at a excessive degree.
“So there’s only a degree of belief there that — his taking pictures, clearly, it helps a ton. He’s a secondary ball-handler, and I believe his protection is sweet. Any time we’re in video games the day after, he’s consistently pushing to turn out to be a greater defender. So identical to the opposite guys, (if) we put him on the market, he’s going to impression profitable.”
Gonzalez, Boston’s 2025 first-round draft decide, has recurrently impacted profitable in his first NBA season. Amongst all gamers who’ve logged not less than 500 minutes, the 19-year-old owns the third-best net rating (18.5), trailing solely Oklahoma Metropolis’s Alex Caruso and Jaylin Williams. (OKC gamers additionally occupy the following 4 spots on that checklist, adopted by Nikola Jokic and Victor Wembanyama.)
He’s additionally lapping his fellow first-year professionals in plus/minus. Gonzalez is a plus-219 via 41 appearances; the second-best rookie is Dylan Harper at plus-96. Philadelphia 76ers guard VJ Edgecombe ranks third at plus-58.
Nonetheless, Gonzalez’s conventional stats lag behind the ten rookies chosen for Rising Stars (Memphis’ Cedric Coward, Edgecombe, Dallas’ Cooper Flagg, Washington’s Tre Johnson, Toronto’s Collin Murray-Boyles, Brooklyn’s Egor Demin, New Orleans’ Jeremiah Fears, Dylan Harper, Charlotte’s Kon Knueppel and New Orleans’ Derrik Queen), 9 of whom are averaging not less than 10 factors per recreation.
Gonzalez is averaging 4.0 factors, 3.3 rebounds, 0.6 assists, 0.6 steals and 0.3 blocks whereas taking pictures 51.5% from the sphere and 38.6% from 3-point vary.
