LAS VEGAS — The Boston Celtics kicked off their summer league with a very summer league game where they shot terribly early on, got blocked a ton, then came back once the shots started falling. They ended up winning the game in overtime, getting double-doubles from three Celtics and a near triple-double from Hugo Gonzalez (despite him shooting 19%). Here’s how the five main Celtics players performedHugo GonzalezHe struggled a little to get by defenders, turning the ball over a couple of times early on. He eventually was able to find some success with his passing, starting with a great find of Chris Cenac Jr. under the basket on a drive. The biggest feature of his night was a nice two-man game with Amari Williams. They were able to play off each other nicely in pick-and-rolls through a variety of actions.This lob play in the third was wonderfulNice pass from Hugo Gonzalez to Amari Williams pic.twitter.com/uF1sUPPrLZ— Danielle Hobeika (@DanielleHobeika) July 11, 2026That's just a well-executed play taking advantage of Williams operating out of the high post and Gonzalez’s feel for the game. And this wrap-around pass a little later was very impressive. — NikNBA🏀 (@NIKNBAYT) July 11, 2026That's great vision. I think Gonzalez forced some of his shots and drives. I think he tried to play like a superstar player and it wasn’t there yet. As high as I am on Gonzalez, I don’t think he’ll become a superstar-type. But I do think he played better than his 3-16 shooting would indicate.He finished with 17 points, 10 rebounds, and eight assists, and there is a lot more room for him to grow.“I think the goal is to improve a bit of everything and try to become a more complete player,” Gonzalez said after the game (in Spanish, which was translated by Google). “Some days I might be driving to the basket but turning the ball over a lot; other days I might be making good reads on the pick-and-roll but not hitting as many shots. It’s simply about continuing to work on every aspect of my game and putting a bit of emphasis on the areas where I’m struggling.”Amari WilliamsHe had a few possessions defensively where he was out of position, but then he also found ways to protect the rim, including a monster block early in the game. I do think he was running out of gas later in the game, but he still was in the right spots for Gonzalez to rack up assists by giving him the ball. Williams’ passing was better than the two assists would indicate. The Celtics ran a fair amount through him in the high post and he was an effective facilitator. Almost an alley-OOPS pic.twitter.com/3JyxAezLjM— Danielle Hobeika (@DanielleHobeika) July 11, 2026He finished with 23 points and 13 rebounds to lead the Celtics in both categories. The Golden Rule of Summer League says this success between two teammates familiar with each other is nice but not indicative of how it would work against real NBA defenses. So I’m not going to overreact to this nice game from him. However, it was good to see him in the right position to get those passes. That's important.Chris Cenac JrHe is the rebounder everyone told us he was. He led the Celtics with five offensive boards, which is really nice to see, especially because a lot of those were maximum effort plays. “As long as he's competing and playing hard and protecting the rim, we can fix everything else,” summer league head coach Amile Jefferson said. He was not shy about shooting but he got a couple of early dunks because of his positioning around the basket. Eventually, he got a couple of threes to fall, including the game-tying shot. It was a bit of an up-and-down debut, with some rookie mistakes, bad fouls, and rushed plays. But his strengths were on display. One play could have been the best play of summer league if he was able to finish it.Wow Chris Cenac Jr. had some BADDDDDD intentions here, too bad it didn't go down pic.twitter.com/pJeZkcWTcO— Danielle Hobeika (@DanielleHobeika) July 11, 2026Bad intentions, indeed.Dillon MitchellHe got the start and made a couple of strong defensive plays that were very on brand, but he was also trying a little too hard in some instances. He had one strong defensive play on an inbound, stealing the ball cleanly but he then forced the shot afterwards instead of understanding the play wasn’t there. The play resulted in a turnover.But he is the supreme athlete we all thought he was. I finally have a Celtics highlight to post! Big Dillon Mitchell block pic.twitter.com/vQ5Rj0mmhn— Danielle Hobeika (@DanielleHobeika) July 11, 2026Dillon Mitchell GOT UP for the tip dunk pic.twitter.com/HoqJe1huXU— Danielle Hobeika (@DanielleHobeika) July 11, 2026I’m going to say his game was TBD. Some expected stuff, but I need to see more over the next few games. John TonjeHe did what he does in this game. He scored 20 points on 5-9 shooting from 3, but his biggest play of the night was a steal and dunk in overtime to seal the game. John Tonje steal and dunk, Celtics win in OT! pic.twitter.com/bFVloceEqS— Danielle Hobeika (@DanielleHobeika) July 11, 2026The Golden Rule tells me it’s great that he hit shots to help the Celtics win. But that's what he does. That doesn’t tell me much about his night. But his defense (team-high three steals) is a nice thing to see. He had a couple of early turnovers during the sloppiest portion of the game, but he did find Gonzalez with a nice cross-court pass for a three. All in all, I think it’s the first step in a compelling case to keep him on a two-way deal.Add us as a preferred source on GoogleFollow