BOSTON — When Sam Hauser went undrafted out of Virginia, the Celtics saw an opportunity to bring a sharpshooter into the organization. While there was little questioning whether his jumper would translate to the NBA, the main concern was how Hauser would hold up defensively.
Now in his third season, Hauser has etched his role with the Celtics as a reserve shooter and a valuable weapon. But he is consistently tested against the opposition where teams will look to isolate against Hauser as a defender. Yet, that has led to some positives for the Celtics, and C’s coach Joe Mazzulla revealed Saturday why teams keep testing Hauser.
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“People see a white shooter, I think most people think he can’t play defense,” Mazzulla said after the Celtics beat the Rockets. “Yeah, I said it. And he’s been able to play defense since I’ve coached him in Summer League (in 2021), and he does a really good job of taking tendencies, does a really good job of understanding who he’s guarding.”
As Mazzulla mentioned, there are likely some stereotypes at play when it comes to Hauser. But the 26-year-old has often held up while in isolation. Sure, he’ll give up buckets on occasion, but that also happens to the game’s best defenders.
There are also some advantages the C’s get when opponents decided to isolate Hauser — especially when he holds up and gets a stop. Whenever teams go at Hauser, they often get out of running their sets, leading to a more stagnant offense. Part of the equation involves the 6-foot-7 forward actually holding up, so he gets more stops than opponents perhaps expect from a white shooter.
“He does a really good job of not giving up angles, and he’s been that way since day one,” Mazzulla said. “So I’ve always said he could guard, I always knew he could be a good defender, and the more people attack him, the more reps we get for the playoffs. I hope they continue to do it.”
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