The 2025 NBA Draft was full of intrigue. The top of the draft was mostly as expected, but there were plenty of rumors ahead of the draft regarding big swings the Celtics may take. Ultimately, the Celtics opted to stay pat at pick 28. As the draft unfolded, many of the players that the mocks had the Celtics picking were still available, Centers Maxime Raynaud and Ryan Kalbrenner, Forwards Rasheer Fleming, Adou Thiero and Noah Penda all were on the board.
The Celtics ultimately went with shooting guard Hugo Gonzalez. The 19-year-old from Real Madrid was a coveted prospect in Jonathan Givony's way to early 2025 mock draft. His stock started to fall though as he didn't get enough time to really shine on Real Madrid's roster. There is a lot of upside based on analysts' reports but that he may take some time to really develop into a top-8 rotation piece.
Brad Stevens may be looking out 5 years and seeing a vision where Gonzalez is the centerpiece of the Celtics core. That's his job to balance the current, short term and long term plans of the team and he has thus far navigated a difficult offseason superbly. But there was a player on the board that was both unexpected and provided better short term and current value to the roster.
The Celtics will regret passing on UConn's Liam McNeeley
If one of the reasons that the Celtics like Gonzalez is his high motor, Liam McNeeley fits that bill as well. McNeeley went to UConn as a freshman and ended up leading the team in scoring, in large part because he has a high basketball IQ and sees the floor well, but also because he keeps moving. Where Gonzalez' scouting report focuses more on athleticism and motor, McNeeley's focuses quite a bit on skills, particularly his ability to shoot.
In Joe Mazzulla's offense, a priority is placed on 3 point shooting. McNeeley ended the season with a 30% 3 point field goal percentage, but some of that was because of the burden he took as the primary scorer. That's something that wouldn't have been the case in Boston. Gonzalez on the other hand is more of an attacking wing relying on his athleticism. His shooting is a glaring developmental opportunity.
McNeeley can easily transition to a shooting specialist at the NBA level and will have a long career as a result of it. Gonzalez could have a higher upside but seems less likely to find that upside considering the high usage of current Celtics Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, Derrick Brown and even Payton Pritchard.
It wasn't expected that McNeeley was going to be available and considering the decisions that Stevens had to make this week, he may have been looking for upside over role players. Unfortunately for the Celtics, with the current construction of the team, it seems that Gonzalez may never reach that upside. McNeeley could have contributed right away.
McNeeley offers the ability to slot into the rotation tomorrow and would have allowed for the Celtics to explore a Sam Hauser trade without worrying about a replacement. He would have fit perfectly into Joe Mazzulla's offense and coaching style. Unfortunately, Celtics fans will have to watch his development from afar.