In NBA insider Mike Scotto's most recent trade intel piece, he speculated that the Boston Celtics may be willing to move on from Sam Hauser this offseason. Scotto wrote, "Another trade candidate to keep an eye on in the eyes of NBA executives around the league is sharpshooter Sam Hauser, a career 42 percent shooter from beyond the arc and has been a consistent rotation player for Boston the past three seasons."
Hauser is set to make roughly $11 million per year over the next four seasons, so the Celtics could be looking to move him as they make an effort to make their team less expensive following Jayson Tatum's Achilles injury. Scotto highlighted Hauser, along with the more expensive stars in Jrue Holiday ($34 million) and Kristaps Porzingis ($30 million), as the most likely trade candidates this offseason. The Celtics need to get less expensive to avoid significant tax consequences.
Celtics Should Consider Selling High on Sam Hauser
Focusing on Sam Hauser, it makes sense for Brad Stevens to sell high on him, given their situation, as Hauser is pretty much a known commodity who doesn't really fit on the Celtics except as a complementary piece off the bench. Consistent three-point shooting is coveted throughout the league, and Hauser has demonstrated he can do that over his past three seasons in Boston.
His consistency as a shooter is almost comical, as he has shot exactly 64% effectively from the field in each of his three seasons in the Celtics rotation. He has also shot 42% from three in two of his seasons and 43% from three during last season. His efficiency numbers are remarkably stable, and teams can comfortably invest in him knowing that he will be able to space the floor for them.
Part of the reason Hauser thrived in Boston was the fact that the C's are loaded with elite defensive players next to him. Hauser is not a good defender, but this was hidden over the last few seasons as he was almost always sharing the court with three or four elite defenders.
Another way the Celtics were able to hide him was the presence of lots of offensive on-ball playmakers. Hauser is a limited ball-handler who can't really make plays for his teammates with the ball. Fortunately, the Celtics didn't ask him to do that, opting instead to just have him stand in the corner and spot-up for catch-and-shoot threes.
Hauser is a shooter. If you trade for him, you are getting a player who is elite in his role but isn't going to develop into anything more than what he is. Still, given his ability to shoot, there should be plenty of interest around the league for Hauser as he can pretty much fit in anywhere on the offensive end of the ball. All 30 teams are always looking to improve their three-point shooting, and Hauser is one of the league's best. At a reasonable price tag of $11 million per year, the Celtics should be able to field plenty of offers for Hauser this offseason.