Hugo Gonzalez was born to play for Real Madrid; that prepared him to be a Celtic

Despite the lack of sleep, Jun. 25 is a date Hugo Gonzalez will never forget. He fulfilled a lifelong dream of winning an ACB championship with Real Madrid. In the wee hours of the morning, the 19-year-old became the first Spanish player drafted by the Boston Celtics in their franchise's history.

"When we finished the celebration, the game, and everything, it was already almost draft night, so I ain't got time for a lot of resting," said Gonzalez. "And then, until 6 a.m. in Spain, it was a long night, but it really paid off."

His reflection on a draft night far different than those there to walk across the podium came on the heels of joining the Celtics' second-round selections, Amari Williams and Max Shulga, in helping conduct a youth basketball clinic at a renovated court unveiling at a YMCA in the greater Boston Area.

Gonzalez arrived in Massachusetts on Monday. As he acclimates to America, he can lean on Williams, who went from Nottingham, England, to play collegiately stateside. The same goes for Shulga, a native of Kyiv, Ukraine, who took his talents to Utah State and then VCU.

"It's kind of the roads and different things like that, trying to understand people, but I feel like it's something we'll help Hugo through, especially coming from Spain," Williams told Hardwood Houdini. "But he seems like he knows a lot of great English already, so he's a step ahead [more] than a lot of people," noted the seven-foot center who finished his collegiate career at Kentucky after four years at Drexel.

"It's just being around each other. I feel like that always helps, and it's going to help all of us mold back into being in Boston."

As Gonzalez embarks on the next chapter in his life, he hasn't just left home; his NBA dream is also taking him away from a program near and dear to his heart.

The parallels between Real Madrid's organization and the Celtics

After Boston chose Gonzalez with their first-round pick, Brad Stevens touched on that subject, noting a shared trait between the two.

"When you put on a Real Madrid jersey, you put on the responsibility, similar to here. And I think that that's a good thing," said the Celtics' president of basketball operations.

Even with inconsistent opportunities and a fight for playing time, the six-foot-six wing felt the weight of playing for a club with championship expectations, internally and externally. First as a fan, then as a player, he grew up in that environment.

"For me, playing for Madrid Academy since I was 10, it was almost like playing for a team [where] winning was a must every year for every title. So, [I'm] pretty used to the team success. It's the first and the main thing for the whole season. It's nothing that I need to learn; it's something that I already got in my DNA. So, I think that's going to help a franchise like the Celtics, too, and I hope it does."

The similarities between the teams should help Gonzalez acclimate to his new franchise, one that, like Real Madrid, is a global brand residing in a sports-crazed region.

That familiarity makes him a perfect fit in Boston. So does his approach on the court. As detailed in Hardwood Houdini's profile on Gonzalez, the Celtics' first-round pick plays with an edge.

He's physical at both ends of the floor, and his high-revving motor runs nonstop. It's a style that made the franchise's fans fall in love with Marcus Smart, among countless others. It will quickly endear the 19-year-old to his new supporters.

"That's all, more or less, what I am playing on the court," Gonzalez told Hardwood Houdini when asked if that's always been how he carries himself on the court. "That's my main type of playing, and I don't know how to play it another way. So that's probably the thing that defines me as a player."

Something that will also help is his experience around a highly decorated roster filled with former NBA players. That includes Serge Ibaka, Mario Hezonja, and Facundo Campazzo. A year ago, he even got to play with his idol, three-time EuroLeague champion and former Liga ACB Domestic Player of the Year, Rudy Fernandez.

"I think that this season that I got with Madrid, it was also like a pre-rookie season, so it's going to help me a lot for my first year, especially, hanging out with professional players already, because I've already been with some ex, former NBA players. So having that experience already on my backpack is something that's gonna be really useful," Gonzalez told Hardwood Houdini.

The 19-year-old wing with a relentless motor and a selfless approach was born to play for Real Madrid. It's also what makes him perfect for the Celtics.