Brooklyn Nets big man Danny Wolf just enjoyed his best game of the season by a long shot, posting impressive numbers on Saturday night. He was selected right before the Boston Celtics picked in the 2025 NBA Draft, so if he performs super well, there could be some disappointment on their side.
However, Boston got Hugo Gonzalez with their pick at the end of the first round. He isn’t playing a ton of minutes just yet, but he’s shown a ton of impressive flashes, and fans should be patient. Even if Wolf continues to shine in Brooklyn, Gonzalez was a great pick for the Celtics.
He just may need some time to fully get used to the NBA.
Celtics should be happy with Hugo Gonzalez instead of Danny Wolf
Wolf struggled a lot early in the season, primarily because he simply could not crack Jordi Fernandez’s rotation, even being sent down to the G League for some games.
In fact, his appearance off the pine in the Nets’ 116-99 loss to the Milwaukee Bucks on Saturday was only the fifth time he’s earned playing time at the NBA level this season.
He played a whopping 30:17 in the contest, which is more than he played in each of his other four appearances combined. The most minutes he played in a game prior to Saturday were the night before, when he played 12:46 in a loss to the LA Clippers on Friday night.
Well, Wolf made the most of his playing time against the Bucks. He finished the game with an impressive 22 points, four rebounds, four assists, and one block while shooting 8-of-16 from the field and 5-of-9 from beyond the three-point arc.
It was a breakout performance for Wolf, and it could lead to more playing time for the big man. Playing time that could make the Celtics and, most notably, the fanbase, wonder what could have been had Wolf fallen to them.
But people shouldn’t get too ahead of themselves.
Wolf could be a solid player someday, but despite him churning out a better statistical performance than Gonzalez has up to this point in their careers, the latter still has a better trajectory.
There’s no denying that Wolf is a skilled center, but Gonzalez’s defensive instincts are rarer than anything Wolf could have brought to the table for Boston.
Gonzalez has already been entrusted with taking on matchups like Jalen Brunson, Cade Cunningham, and Tyrese Maxey, and he’s not even 20 games into his NBA career yet.
So, before anyone jumps the gun with wishing that Wolf fell to Boston, just remember everything Gonzalez does.
Even if the stats start to pour in for Wolf, Gonzalez was still the right pick for the Celtics, no matter the order.