The Boston Celtics have been far from their previous dominant selves in knocking down shots from the outside. And sharpshooter Sam Hauser, like the team, has also fallen into a bit of a slump recently.
During their latest loss against the Orlando Magic on Sunday, Hauser was only able to connect on one field goal attempt -- a 3-pointer. After taking the floor for 16 minutes in a second consecutive loss against a lousy Magic squad, Hauser described the made three as "a relief."
"It was a relief to see one go in the hoop," Hauser told The Atheltic after practice Tuesday. "That type of, 'Praise the lord' moment."
That reaction seems more than warranted considering Hauser went scoreless the previous night against the Magic. He went 0-for-2 from beyond the arc in 10 minutes with just a pair of rebounds to show that he actually played.
Yet, the 25-year-old acknowledged that his early emergence likely spawned from being a new face in the Celtics rotation. With Hauser having played just 6.1 minutes per 26 games last season, teams weren't too aware of the Virginia product.
"Early in the year, I was making a lot of shots, getting a lot of open looks, partly because teams just didn't know necessarily what my game was and who I was," Hauser said. "I think a lot of the open looks earlier in the year came from that. And after kind of proving what I can do and what I've shown, I think teams have adjusted to it a bit and now I guess respect me more in that sense."
In his last five games, Hauser has shot a combined 4-for-19 (21%) from 3-point territory. Within that stretch, the Celtics have gone 1-4. Their only victory came in overtime against the Los Angeles Lakers.
Hauser also hasn't connected on multiple outside shots since Dec. 7 against the Phoenix Suns, nor has he hit double-digit scoring figures in December.
As of Wednesday, Hauser has averaged 6.5 points, 2.5 rebounds and 1.7 assists in 31 games played. His minutes have also dipped to 13.9 as opposed to November when he played 19.1 per contest.
"The ball just hasn't come my way, which is all right," Hauser said. "As long as I'm doing what I'm told to do and sprint, get to the corners and space the floor. Maybe that just means it's opening up other shots for other guys and I'm not getting it, which is fine. Sometimes the numbers only say so much about it. But maybe we've been playing a little slower."
The Celtics, who've lost four of their last five games, return to action on Wednesday night. Tipoff against the Indiana Pacers (15-16) is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET. at TD Garden.
