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Boston Celtics (3-1) vs Atlanta Hawks (4-0)
Sunday, July 20, 2025
6:00 PM ET
Summer League Game #5
Consolation Game
TV: ESPN U
Thomas and Mack Center
Boston Celtics RosterJordan Walsh (38th pick 2023)
Baylor Scheierman (30th pick 2024)
Hugo Gonzalez (28th pick 2025)
Max Shulga (57th pick 2025)
Amari Williams (46th pick 2025)
Aaron Scott (undrafted rookie)
Ben Gregg (undrafted rookie)
Zach Hicks (undrafted rookie)
Hayden Gray (undrafted rooie)
Miles Norris (undrafted 2023- 2 way player with Boston)
Kenneth Loftin, Jr (undrafted, 3rd year, MVP in China last season)
Jalen Bridges (2-way player with Phoenix, played 8 games with Suns)
Kendall Brown (48th pick in 2022)
Isaiah Wong (55th pick in 2023, played 20 games with Charlotte)
Head CoachMatt Reynolds
Atlanta Hawks Roster Jacob Toppin
Kobe Bufkin
Kobe Johnson
Javan Johnson
Asa Newell
Devion Smith
Dwight Murray, Jr
Josh Christopher
Nikola Durisic
Adam Flagler
Eli John Ndiaye
Lamont Butler
Jack McVeigh
Nell Joseph
Jack White
Jake Stephens
Head Coach Bryan Bailey
Game NotesThe Celtics look to end Summer League on a high note as they take on the Atlanta Hawks. Both of these teams are playing in their 5th Summer League game as neither played in California or Salt Lake City. Both of these teams last played on Thursday. Atlanta has wins over Memphis, Houston, Phoenix and Miami with no losses. The Celtics have wins over Memphis, New York, and LA Lakers and a loss to Miami.
The Celtics roster includes 14 players including undrafted players, the Celtics 3 draft picks, 2 way players and 2 players from the Celtics roster last season. Jordan Walsh was the Celtics 38th pick in 2023 and returns as a 3rd year player. Baylor Scheierman is entering his second season after showing some flashes last season. Miles Norris returns after half a season as a 2 way player with the Celtics.
The Celtics 3 draft picks are also playing for the Celtics in Summer League. Hugo Gonzalez, the Celtics lone first round pick (28th), is expected to be on the Celtics roster this season and has played well overall and should be able to help the team this season. The Celtics 2nd round picks, Amari Williams and Max Shulga, are both expected to sign 2-way contracts with the Celtics this season.
Charles Bassey, who signed a contract to play in just the first 3 games due to other commitments, is not expected to play in this game. He impressed in those first 3 games and hopefully will get a training camp invite from the Celtics, especially since they are short handed in the front court after losing Kristaps Porzingis, Luke Kornet and Al Horford.
The Hawks are led by Asa Newell, who was the 23rd pick in this year's draft. He was drafted by the New Orleans Pelicans and traded to the Hawks on draft night. Kobe Bufkin was the Hawks 15th pick in the 2023 draft. He has been injury plagued in his first 2 seasons with the team. Jacob Toppin was undrafted in 2023 and signed a 2 way contract with the Hawks on 3/4/25.
Eli John Ndiaye went undrafted in 2025 after playing for Real Madrid since 2021 and was signed to a 2-way contract on 7/3/25. Jack McVeigh was undrafted in 2019 and has been playing in Australia before signing a 2 way contract with Houston last season. Nikola Dursic was the 43rd pick by Miami in 2024 and his draft rights were traded to Atlanta on draft night.
Matt Reynolds is the head coach for the Celtics Summer League team. Reynolds started as the Video Coordinator for the Celtics in 2015. He has been an assistant coach for the club since 2022. Bryan Bailey is the head coach for the Hawks Summer League team. Bailey has been an assistant under Quin Snyder in Atlanta since 2023. This is his 3rd time coaching Summer League as he coached Utah's Summer League team in 2021 and 2022.
Possible StartersThe Celtics started Max Shulga, Baylor Scheierman, Hugo Gonzalez, Jordan Walsh and Amari Williams in Friday's game against the Grizzlies. Against the Knicks on Sunday, they started Shulga, Walsh, Scheierman, Bridges and Williams. Against the Heat, the Celtics started Shulga, Scheierman, Gonzalez, Walsh and Bassey. Of course, in Summer League, they may start any random 5 players and not necessarily start the same 5 or the best 5.
The Hawks have started Kobe Bufkin at the point and Niola Durisic at shooting guard in all 4 games so far. Asa Newell started their last game at center and the 3 previous games at power forward. Kobe Johnson and Nell Joseph both started their last game. Jacob Toppin started 3 games at small forward and Jake Stephens started 2 games at center while Nell Joseph started one game at center.
Players to Watch
Boston CelticsJordan Walsh - Walsh played very well on Friday, finishing with a game high 17 points, 3 rebounds and 2 assists while shooting 50% from the field and 50% from beyond the arc. On Sunday, he seemed to be pushing too hard, and he struggled with his shot while committing 7 fouls. He started very strong on Monday with 13 points, 3 rebounds and 1 steal before being ejected with 2 technical fouls in 10 minutes of play. He once again played well against the Lakers with 17 points, 6 rebounds, 1 assists and 2 steals.
Hugo Gonzalez - Gonzalez impressed in his debut on Friday, finishing with 12 points, 4 rebounds, 5 assists, 1 steal and 2 blocks. He played hard, especially on defense. He sat out on Sunday in the first of back to back games and finished Monday's game with 10 points, 7 rebounds, and 3 assists but also had 6 turnovers. He finished Thursday's game with 13 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists and 1 block, while once again playing hard, especially on defense.
Baylor Scheierman - Scheierman struggled offensively in his first outing on Friday, finishing with 8 points on 2-14 shooting from the field and 1-8 from beyond the arc. He did show some good things though with 5 rebounds and 4 assists. On Sunday, he started off strong and finished with 13 points, 8 rebounds, 8 assists, and 3 steals. On Thursday, he once again struggled with his shot but again, played very well all around with 9 points, 5 rebounds, 6 assists and 1 steal.
Atlanta Hawks
Kobe Bufkin - Kobe Bufkin has started at the point in every game for the Hawks so far. He averaged 19.5 points, 5.3 rebounds, 4.3 assists, and 1 steal per game in those 4 games.
Asa Newell - Newell started one game at center and 3 games at power forward. Over the 4 games, he averaged 13.5 points, 8.3 rebounds, 1 assist, 1.3 steals and 1 block per game.
Nikola Durisic - Durisic started all 4 games for the Hawks, one at small forward and 3 at shooting guard. He averaged 11.8 points, 3.8 rebounds, 1.8 assists, 1 steal and 1 block per game.
Keys to the GameIt's Summer League - Both coaches are going to be looking at players to see if any of them play well enough to make the main roster. They are also looking at players for their G-League teams. Some players may get a lot of playing time and some will play very little. Players who started last game may sit this game or they may start again. Often coaches have seen all they need to from some players and will sit them. This may be especially true of players who will definitely make the roster this season and want to avoid a possible injury.
Defense and Rebounding - Whether it is Summer League, Preseason, Regular Season or Playoffs, defense and rebounding are always keys to getting a win. The team that plays harder on the defensive end and that crashes the boards for rebounds, will likely get the win.
Both of these teams have shown that they can play tough defense and need to continue that in this game.
Final Game - Since this is the final Summer League game for both teams, the coaches can either go all out for a win or they can let the players who haven't played as yet play the majority of the minutes. This is a consolation game and so there is nothing to be gained by winning other than pride. The Celtics should want to hand the Hawks their first Summer League loss and end their time in Summer League on a high note.
Final ThoughtsThe Celtics have had various players show promise and upside in their 4 games so far. Charles Bassey looked like a Summer League steal in the first 3 games but won't be playing in this game. The Celtics first round draft pick showed that he definitely can play in the NBA. Jordan Walsh and Baylor Scheierman both have struggled in some areas, but also they have played well in others. They have a chance to be rotation players this season. Williams and Shulga both showed some promise and should have a good season with the Maine Celtics.
Topic: Celtics (3-1) vs Hawks (4-0) SL Game #5 7/20/25 (Read 1380 times)