Thursday’s 108-81 Boston Celtics win over the Milwaukee Bucks validated the work ethic of just about everyone who took the floor for Boston. Without both Jaylen Brown and Neemias Queta, who each scored 27 points in Sunday’s win over the Philadelphia 76ers, it was up to the rest of the Cs to take care of business against the Bucks. As the score would indicate, they did just that.
In particular, rookie wing Hugo Gonzalez shined in his third career start, posting career-highs in points (18), rebounds (16), and blocks (3). It's tough to imagine that anyone saw this coming when Boston picked him 28th in the 2025 NBA Draft, but, Brad Stevens did it again, it seems.
“We’ll start Amari [Williams], we’ll start Ron [Harper Jr.],” Joe Mazzulla said postgame (via NBC Sports Boston). “We want to validate work ethic. We want to validate the process by trusting all 12, 13, 14, or 15 guys that are in the game.”
Mazzulla highlights the behind the scenes work of his players just about any time he gets the opportunity. To him, minutes are earned in those moments, rather than by what is done on the court.
Gonzalez echoed that sentiment postgame. During his walkoff interview with NBC Sports Boston’s Abby Chin, he pointed to his work ethic,and that of his teammates, as the thing that helps him trust that he’ll be ready for moments like Monday.
“The work ethic is there,” he said. “I just try and keep doing what I’m doing and keep trusting everything even when it’s not perfect. Obviously, not it’s not going to be like today every single day, but I trust the work and appreciate [my teammates great defense].”
Gonzalez's impact was timely, as well as plentiful
The final score gives no indication, but at one point, the Celtics looked like they could be in for a long night in Giannis Antetokounmpo’s return to action, after he spent weeks on the sidelines with a calf strain.
Milwaukee darted out to a 7-0 lead before Gonzalez kickstarted Boston’s offense by scoring their first four points. First, he euro-stepped through contact for a tough finish, then hustled for an offensive rebound putback on a missed Derrick White three on the following possession.
Hugo taking OFF 🚀 pic.twitter.com/EbFDeKyxDY
— Boston Celtics (@celtics) March 3, 2026
Hugo’s third rebound of the first three minutes closed out a Celtics stop, before he quickly got the ball out to White who found Sam Hauser for a transition three. His energy was essentially an EKG for the Cs early.
“I think everything starts with those guys, their competitive character, their understanding of the process, and their professionalism. I thought Hugo was great tonight right from the beginning of the game, taking on the challenge of guarding Giannis, and just his energy on the offensive end.”
Antetokounmpo logged a lackluster performance, by his standards, posting 18 points and 11 rebounds on just 7-18 from the field. For a guy who takes almost all of his shots at or around the rim, that’s just not the efficiency he’s looking for.
Gonzalez spent a lot of the night trying to deny the Greek Freak the ball, and did a decent job guarding him, but credited his team’s defense as a unit for the real reason for the former MVP’s struggles.
“Giannis is an amazing player and you can’t guard him with just one person,” Gonzalez explained. “We had to bring a team effort. We tried to follow the game plan and we succeeded in that.”
The 20-year-old Spaniard did have a few nice moments on Antetokounmpo, though. In the spirit of team defense, Gonzalez helped over as Giannis looked to score from the post and stole the ball from him, midway through the second quarter.
One of the big highlights for Hugo actually stemmed from becoming a highlight himself. He was on the receiving end of a poster dunk from Antetokounmpo on one of the first possessions of the second half, after the Bucks star backed him down from the block.
About six minutes later, Gonzalez found himself in a nearly identical spot. This time, he held his ground and drew a charge as Giannis tried to outmuscle him. His on-the-fly adjustment was not only impressive, but showcased the emphasis this Celtics team puts on preparation.
It’s one of the main reasons why they have now won six of their seven games without Brown this season. Everyone is ready when their number is called.
“It goes back to the beginning of the season,” Mazzulla said. “One of the biggest strengths of the locker room has always been being able to win games when guys are out when we’ve sat guys over the last three or four years. That’s just kind of the DNA of the locker room.