Celtics (2-1) vs Kings (1-2) Vegas SL Game #4 7/15/26

[FLCeltsFan]

  at 
Boston Celtics (2-1) at Sacramento Kings (1-2)
Wednesday, July 15, 2026
8:00 PM ET
Summer League Game #4
TV: NBCSB, ESPN 2
Thomas and Mack Center


Celtics Summer League Roster
Mohammad Amini #54 R
Chris Cenac, Jr #12  R
Tucker DeVries  #41 R
Hugo Gonzalez #28  1
Caleb Grill #37  R
Curtis Jones #26 R
Kyle Mangas #43  R
Dillon Mitchell #20 R
Hank Morgan #51  R
Nick Pringle #40  R
Day Day  Thomas  #38  R
John Tonje #8  R
Milos Uzan #29  R
Chauncey Wiggins #50  R
Alondes Williams #46   3
Amari Williams #77 1

Head Coach
Amile Jefferson

Starters in 1st 2 games
Curtis Jones, John Tonje,  Hugo Gonzalez, Dillon Mitchell, and Amari Williams

Starters in 3rd game
Curtis Jones, John Tonje, Tucker DeVries, Dillon Mitchell, and Chris Cenac, Jr

Celtics Players to Watch


Hugo Gonzalez - Hugo was the 28th pick in last year's draft.  In last year's Summer League,  he averaged 10.8 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 2.8 assists.  He averaged 3.9 points and 3.3 rebounds in 14 minutes per game last season.  His +11.9 rating was the highest for any rookie that played at least 100 minutes.  So far in Summer League he is averaging 15.5 points, 7 rebounds, 6 assists and 2 steals per game while shooting 23.1% from the field and 22.2% from beyond the arc.  He shot better in Game 2 than Game 1 but still needs some improvement in that area.   He sat out the Celtics 3rd game but I'm expecting him to play in this one. 

Dillon Mitchell - Mitchell is a 4 year college player who was drafted with the 40th pick.  He is 6'8" with a 6'10" wingspan. He is a super athlete, good finisher, rebounder and defender.  He averaged 8.3 points, 7.0 rebounds, 3.0 assists, and 1.3 steals per game over 37 games with 25 starts last year.  He was named to All Big East 3rd team and Big East All Defensive team.  He is an excellent defender but weak on offense.  He shot just 19.3% on 3's and 48.8% on free throws in college.    In the first 3 games, he is averaging 13 points, 5 rebounds, 1.3 assists, 2.1 steals and 1.3 blocks while shooting 47.2% from the field and 37.5% from beyond the arc. 

John Tonje  - Tonje came to the Celtics as a 2-way player from Utah in the Chris Boucher trade at last year's deadline.  At the end of last season, his contract was converted to a standard contract.  His option wasn't picked up this season but the way he has played in Summer League, he is earning at least a 2 way contract again.   He has started all 3 games so far and is averaging 14 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist, and 1.7 steals while shooting 43.8% from the field and 47.4% from beyond the arc. 

Amari Williams - Amari was the 46th pick in last year's draft.  He spent most of last season on a 2-way deal but was converted to a standard contract at the end of last season.  He averaged 1.4 points, and 1.8 rebounds in 6.6 minutes with Boston last year.  He averaged 15.8 points, 10.9 rebounds, 4.9 assists and 1.8 blocks with Maine last season.  He has already been signed to a 2-way contract for this season.  He is averaging 14.5 points, 9 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 3 blocks while shooting 64.3% from the field with no 3's.   

Sacramento Kings Roster
Nique Clifford  #0  1 year
Darius Acuff, Jr   #5  R
Adam Flagler  #20  2 years
Jonathan Mogbo #22  2 years
Isaiah Stevens  #24   2 years
Mitch Mascari   #25   R
Elias Ralph   #26   R
Viktor Lakhin   #30  R
Dylan Cardwell  #32  1 year
Alex Karaban  #33  R
Emanuel Sharp   #34   R
Anthony Dell'Orso  #37   R
Maxime Raynaud   #42   1 year
Marquel Sutton  #49   R
BJ Edwards  #50   R   

Kings Starters  Game 1
Darius Acuff, Jr,  Nique Clifford, Jonathan Mogbo, Dylan Cardwell, and Alex Karaban

Kings Starters Game 2
Darius Acuff, Jr, Nique Clifford, Alex Karaban, Dylan Cardwell, and Maxime Raynaud

Kings Starters Game 3
Darius Acuff, Jr, Nique Clifford, Alex Karaban, Maxime Raynaud, and Dylan Cardwell

Kings Players to Watch


Maxime Raynaud - Raynaud was the 42nd pick in the 2025 draft.  He played 4 years at Stanford and averaged 20.1 points and 10.9 rebounds in his senior year.  He was named to the 1st team all ACC and became 1 of only 3 players to average at least 20 points, 10 rebounds and 50 3-pointers in a season.  The other 2 were Kevin Durant and Carmelo Anthony.  Last season he averaged 12.5 points, 7.5 rebounds and 1.4 assists while shooting 57.1% from the field and 32.4% from beyond the arc. In Summer League he is averaging 20 points, 12 rebounds, 2 steals and 1 block while shooting 46.7% from the field and 40% from beyond the arc. 

Darius Acuff, Jr -  Acuff was the 7th pick in this year's draft.  He won the Bob Cousy award for point guards, and was the SEC Player of the Year and Rookie of the Year.  He averaged 23 points and 6.6 assists in his senior year.  He has been compared by some to Allen Iverson.  In Summer League he is averaging 15.5 points, 2 rebounds, 5.5 assists, 1 steal, and 1 block while shooting 29.4% from the field and 23.1% from beyond the arc. 

Nique Clifford - Clifford was the 24th pick in the 2025 draft by the Thunder and was traded to the Kings on Draft night.  He was a 4 year college player and averaged 12.2 points, 7.6 rebounds, and 3 assists in his senior year.  This is his 2nd Summer League. He averaged 8.6 points, 3.8 rebounds and 2.4 assists as a rookie.  In Summer League, he is averaging 15 points, 3.5 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.5 steals while shooting 42.9% from the field and 33.3% from beyond the arc.   

Emanuel Sharp - Sharp is an Israel-American player.  He was the 45th pick in the 2026 draft.  He was a 4 year college player at Houston.  In his senior year, he averaged 15.5 points, 3 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 1.2 steals.  He made Big 12 First Team and Big 12 All Defense team.  In Summer League, he is averaging 14 points, 2 rebounds and 2.5 blocks per game while shooting 33.3% from the field and 28.6% from beyond the arc.

Game Notes
The Kings have played 3 games together in the California Summer League where they went 3-0, beating Brooklyn 79-76, Golden State 91-85 and Milwaukee 95-89.  They have also played 3 games in the Las Vegas Summer League, going 1-2, beating the Clippers 91-85 and losing to Washington 104-85 and to Brooklyn 115-83.  They are playing in the 2nd of back to back games while the Celtics had Tuesday off.  The Celtics have played just 3 games together. 

The Celtics are coached by Amile Jefferson.  Jefferson was named Director of Player Development for the Duke Blue Devils in 2021.  He was promoted to assistant coach at Duke for the 2022-23 season.  In 2023, Jefferson became an assistant coach for the Boston Celtics under head coach Joe Mazzulla. Jefferson played with Jayson Tatum at Duke  and he played for the Celtics on an Exhibit 10 contract before being hired as an assistant coach. 

The Kings are coached by Chris Darnell.  He began his coaching career as a Video Coordinator for the Cavaliers from 2019-2021.  From 2021-24, he was the associate head coach for the Cleveland Charge of the G-League.  He served as the head coach for the Charge in the 2024-25 season.  He has been an assistant coach for the Kings since 2025. 

The Celtics are averaging 41.0 rebounds per game while the Kings are averaging 34.7 rebounds per game.  The Celtics need to continue to crash the boards and beat the Kings to rebounds.  The Celtics are turning the ball over 18 times per game while the Kings are averaging 19.7 turnovers per game.  It's not unusual for Summer League teams to turn the ball over a lot because of limited playing time together and surprising that the Kings are turning it over more with 3 extra games under their belts.   

Neither team is shooting the ball very well, but the Celtics were able to play enough defense to get wins in 2 games.  The Celtics are shooting 37.2% from the field  and 32.4% from beyond the arc.  The Kings are shooting 40.8% from the field and 28.7% from beyond the arc.  The Celtics need to continue to play good defense while working on improving their shooting.

[slamtheking]

TP for another great game thread FL.  hope to see a good game from all top prospects in this game

[FLCeltsFan]

TP to  slamtheking  for being the first to post in the Game Thread!!!!!!!!

GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO Summer Celtics!!!!!

Beat the Kings!!!!!!!!

[Celtics2021]

Here?s hoping we get more Hugo and less Curtis Jones.

[A Future of Stevens]

I know Hugo has struggled shooting the ball, but the team seems to flow better when he is out there. Even in summer league's chaos, you can see it.

[Celtics2021]

I know Hugo has struggled shooting the ball, but the team seems to flow better when he is out there. Even in summer league's chaos, you can see it.

This is for sure true.  The most recent game highlighted this, but even for the short stretches in each of the first two games, the Celtics were outscored in both when Hugo was on the bench, while leading when Hugo played.

[Silas]

I know Hugo has struggled shooting the ball, but the team seems to flow better when he is out there. Even in summer league's chaos, you can see it.

This is for sure true.  The most recent game highlighted this, but even for the short stretches in each of the first two games, the Celtics were outscored in both when Hugo was on the bench, while leading when Hugo played.

I think it's more than a coincidence that the team plays better when he is on the floor....
With help from AI:

During the 2025/26 NBA regular season, Hugo posted an exceptional +246 total plus/minus. Despite playing limited minutes and averaging just 3.9 points per game, his advanced plus/minus and efficiency metrics rivaled the top players in the league.

On-Off Plus/Minus: Hugo logged a staggering +14.8 net on-off plus/minus rating (minimum 800 minutes played), which actually led the entire NBA ahead of Nikola Jokić (+14.2) and Victor Wembanyama (+13.4).

[Celtics2021]

I know Hugo has struggled shooting the ball, but the team seems to flow better when he is out there. Even in summer league's chaos, you can see it.

This is for sure true.  The most recent game highlighted this, but even for the short stretches in each of the first two games, the Celtics were outscored in both when Hugo was on the bench, while leading when Hugo played.

I think it's more than a coincidence that the team plays better when he is on the floor....
With help from AI:

During the 2025/26 NBA regular season, Hugo posted an exceptional +246 total plus/minus. Despite playing limited minutes and averaging just 3.9 points per game, his advanced plus/minus and efficiency metrics rivaled the top players in the league.

On-Off Plus/Minus: Hugo logged a staggering +14.8 net on-off plus/minus rating (minimum 800 minutes played), which actually led the entire NBA ahead of Nikola Jokić (+14.2) and Victor Wembanyama (+13.4).

I do not believe that second stat to be correct (basketball reference shows Hugo to have been a +6.2 on/off, third on the team behind Queta and White), but his value at making his teammates better is no surprise to me, and is why I would consider starting him.

[Silas]

I know Hugo has struggled shooting the ball, but the team seems to flow better when he is out there. Even in summer league's chaos, you can see it.

This is for sure true.  The most recent game highlighted this, but even for the short stretches in each of the first two games, the Celtics were outscored in both when Hugo was on the bench, while leading when Hugo played.

I think it's more than a coincidence that the team plays better when he is on the floor....
With help from AI:

During the 2025/26 NBA regular season, Hugo posted an exceptional +246 total plus/minus. Despite playing limited minutes and averaging just 3.9 points per game, his advanced plus/minus and efficiency metrics rivaled the top players in the league.

On-Off Plus/Minus: Hugo logged a staggering +14.8 net on-off plus/minus rating (minimum 800 minutes played), which actually led the entire NBA ahead of Nikola Jokić (+14.2) and Victor Wembanyama (+13.4).

I do not believe that second stat to be correct (basketball reference shows Hugo to have been a +6.2 on/off, third on the team behind Queta and White), but his value at making his teammates better is no surprise to me, and is why I would consider starting him.

I agree....

again from AI:

The +14.8 is a "Net On-Off" Rating (Per 100 Possessions): This metric measures the absolute difference between how the team performs when a player is on the court versus when they are on the bench. During the regular season, the Boston Celtics were 14.8 points per 100 possessions better with Gonz?lez on the floor than with him off it. This is the stat that led the entire NBA.

The +6.2 is his "Net Rating" (Per 100 Possessions) on certain tracking sites: Net rating simply looks at the team's point differential while he was on the floor (Offensive Rating minus Defensive Rating), adjusted to a standard 100-possession baseline. (Note: His official NBA.com tracking Net Rating actually finished at +11.9, but tracking databases like Cleaning The Glass filter out garbage time minutes, which alters the final baseline to a lower net figure like +6.2).

Bottom line, Hugo is a big positive for the team when he is on the floor....

[Celtics2021]

I know Hugo has struggled shooting the ball, but the team seems to flow better when he is out there. Even in summer league's chaos, you can see it.

This is for sure true.  The most recent game highlighted this, but even for the short stretches in each of the first two games, the Celtics were outscored in both when Hugo was on the bench, while leading when Hugo played.

I think it's more than a coincidence that the team plays better when he is on the floor....
With help from AI:

During the 2025/26 NBA regular season, Hugo posted an exceptional +246 total plus/minus. Despite playing limited minutes and averaging just 3.9 points per game, his advanced plus/minus and efficiency metrics rivaled the top players in the league.

On-Off Plus/Minus: Hugo logged a staggering +14.8 net on-off plus/minus rating (minimum 800 minutes played), which actually led the entire NBA ahead of Nikola Jokić (+14.2) and Victor Wembanyama (+13.4).

I do not believe that second stat to be correct (basketball reference shows Hugo to have been a +6.2 on/off, third on the team behind Queta and White), but his value at making his teammates better is no surprise to me, and is why I would consider starting him.

I agree....

again from AI:

The +14.8 is a "Net On-Off" Rating (Per 100 Possessions): This metric measures the absolute difference between how the team performs when a player is on the court versus when they are on the bench. During the regular season, the Boston Celtics were 14.8 points per 100 possessions better with Gonz?lez on the floor than with him off it. This is the stat that led the entire NBA.

The +6.2 is his "Net Rating" (Per 100 Possessions) on certain tracking sites: Net rating simply looks at the team's point differential while he was on the floor (Offensive Rating minus Defensive Rating), adjusted to a standard 100-possession baseline. (Note: His official NBA.com tracking Net Rating actually finished at +11.9, but tracking databases like Cleaning The Glass filter out garbage time minutes, which alters the final baseline to a lower net figure like +6.2).

Bottom line, Hugo is a big positive for the team when he is on the floor....

AI is defending its hallucination.  Hugo has a net rating of 12.4 on bb reference, and 11.9 on NBA.com?s official stats.  (BB-ref tracks subs slightly differently than NBA.com.  But NBA.com does not release an official on-off metric, so I used BB-Reference).  Neither are close to 6.2.

But Hugo has a terrific positive impact on the game and would be an asset as a starter.

[Goldstar88]

So Hugo is going to go from out of the rotation in the playoffs to a starter in just a few months time. Lol

[Jiri Welsch]

So Hugo is going to go from out of the rotation in the playoffs to a starter in just a few months time. Lol

What makes you say that?

[Celtics2021]

So Hugo is going to go from out of the rotation in the playoffs to a starter in just a few months time. Lol

Watch Brad?s press conference after the playoffs.  You can tell if he were the coach Hugo would have not been out of the rotation.  Even in Game 7, the first game he got a chance, Celtics were plus 3 in his 13 minutes, and -12 in his 35 minutes on the bench.

With Tatum and George likely to miss games on back-to-backs at a minimum, there is ample room for Hugo to start a bunch of games even if he is not a full-time starter.  And he should.

[Vermont Green]

It is hard to reconcile these +/-, on/off, and NRtg stats.  Per BB Reference, his +/- per 100 possessions is +12.4.  His net on/off +/- is +6.2.  I think this means that the team is +12.4 per 100 when he is on the court but still positive (+6.2) when he is off the court.  I believe that the stat is exactly half (+6.2) is just a coincidence.

His net rating was +11.9 when on the court.  This is the net of offensive rating and defensive rating.  This is a little different than +/- per 100 possessions because offensive and defensive possessions are not always the same (I can't think of any other reason for this small discrepancy). 

I can't tell if the +6.2 net on/off is filtering out garbage time, I doubt it.  But if the team is +12.4 per 100 possessions with him on the court, the team was not negative with him off the court.  This is saying the team was +6.2 per 100 with him off the court, which is reasonable, so his net is 12.4 - 6.2 = 6.2

For him to have a +14.8 net on off, the team would need to be -2.4 per 100 possessions with him off the court.  I don't see how that could be correct.