If you’ve watched Sam Hauser enough, watched the Celtics enough and watched basketball enough, you just knew the second that shot left Hauser’s hands that it was absolute money.
The same man who shot 7 percent from 3-point range in the last series played a critical role in one of the defining sequences of the night – a night where he left his imprint on the action in more ways than one.
Kristaps Porzingis drilled a 3 on one end, swatted a shot on the other and passed it to Jrue Holiday. Holiday found a drifting Hauser in the corner, and Hauser nailed it with a hand in his face to extend the lead to 17. Slump over. Kyle Korver mode activated. Garden buzzing.
“It’s a Celtic avalanche!,” ESPN’s Mike Breen bellowed.
Porzingis then rejected another shot, helping the Celtics take that 17-point lead into the second quarter in an eventual 107-89 Game 1 victory Thursday night.
It was one of the most magical highlights of the season, and one that will be played on loop for decades to come if the Celtics win this thing. It felt like poetic justice for Hauser after he lived a shooter’s worst nightmare against the Pacers.
Hauser added another catch-and-shoot 3, where he kept the ball high and released it in an astonishing 0.47 seconds. Think about that for half a second…Sorry, your half second is up…You’re too late…It’s already left his hands. It’s a shot he’s practiced countless times and one that’s demoralizing for a defense when executed to perfection.
He also drilled a deep 2 to end up 3 for 4 for 8 points, plus four rebounds and an assist. Hauser also played stellar defense, more than holding his own against Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving to finish plus-17.
Credit to Joe Mazzulla for continuing to trust his guy even through a truly appalling shooting slump. It’s one thing to be off and hit about 25 percent of your 3’s. The man was at 7 percent, and Mazzulla didn’t alter his rotation.
The law of averages worked in the Celtics’ favor Thursday night. Hauser could only go up from where he was, and he ultimately delivered in a major way.
It looks like watching his YouTube highlights helped.
But perhaps his most impressive contributions came on the defensive end. The Mavericks’ game plan made sense. Get Hauser on Doncic and Irving in a switch, clear out and let them go to work in the perceived mismatch.
Hauser didn’t get the memo that it was a mismatch. He played tough, tenacious defense and even poked the ball away from Doncic once. Irving scored once, but nothing came easily.
“Even our white guys guard,” Jrue Holiday joked after the game.
The shots are one thing, but the level of execution and poise is another. Hauser consistently made winning plays and was instrumental in helping the Celtics secure a Game 1 win.
If he keeps playing like that, he’s another weapon the Mavericks have to monitor. It’s a dizzying, unenviable task, and one that’s hard to imagine they’ll execute four times in six games.
