After not being included in a trade for Giannis Antetokounmpo, Gonzalez will face more scrutiny this season.
When it comes to Boston Celtics fans, multiple things are true this offseason.
1) On one hand, the fanbase is, collectively, not thrilled with the trade return for Jaylen Brown. Acquiring an aging and oft-injured Paul George, as well as two future first-round picks, doesn't really sit well when Brown is coming off a sixth-place finish in the MVP voting and an All-NBA selection.
2) On another hand, if Brown was going to be traded, a lot of Celtics fans would have preferred to have it come in a deal for superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo, who went from the Milwaukee Bucks to the Miami Heat.
However, the Celtics weren't able to land Antetokounmpo because they weren't willing to include Hugo Gonzalez and/or Baylor Scheierman in a deal for him, according to a recent report from Shams Charania of ESPN.
3) Some fans are certainly dismayed to know that that's "all" that stood in the way of getting a deal done for the multi-time MVP.
But there's another angle to all this now: How much pressure does this put on Gonzalez and Scheierman moving forward?
As noted by Bobby Manning of Celtics on CLNS, the pressure that these players will face will be extensive. For instance, if these players have games where they don't play a lot - or struggle - there will be instant questions or reactions as to why the team held onto them over the summer. How will they handle that pressure and that backlash? How will it impact them?
Boston Celtics guard Hugo Gonzalez (28) loses the ball driving on Chicago Bulls forward Matas Buzelis (14) during the first quarter at TD Garden. Winslow Townson-Imagn ImagesAnd another angle
Furthermore, how does head coach Joe Mazzulla handle everything? Does he feel inclined to get Gonzalez and Scheierman more playing time in order to make them more impactful so that fans don't question the organization's decision to hang onto them?
After all, if they are what prevented an Antetokounmpo trade, does it look good if they are only playing a handful of minutes per night?
These are all things that will have to play out over the course of an 82-game season.
Elsewhere for the Celtics
Boston will finish out its Summer League schedule on Saturday afternoon at 4:30 p.m. ET. They will take on the Orlando Magic in Las Vegas after going 3-1 in the Summer League session.
Once this game ends, the Celtics will be off until training camp in September. The NBA season begins in October and the C's are coming off a 56-26 campaign that saw them finish second in the East.
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