The Boston Celtics are too talented. It’s why they won the NBA Championship this past year in dominant fashion. They parlayed a 64-win regular season into a 16-3 playoff run, capping off the year with Banner 18. Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, and the rest of the starting lineup stole the show. But while those five guys (plus Al Horford) are incredible, their surplus of talent means guys like Sam Hauser are stuck firmly on the bench.The Celtics have a perfect NBA starter just sitting on their bench

 

Hauser signed with the Celtics as an undrafted free agent after the 2021 NBA Draft. He began the season on a two-way contract and was eventually converted to a standard deal deep into the year. Fast forward to now, and he’s a starting-level player who Boston just locked up on a team-friendly deal to come off their benc h.  There are different types of starters in the NBA. Obviously, if a team wants to be in the upper echelon of rosters, they’ll need a star or two. And perhaps even a superstar. Hauser doesn’t fall into those categories.

The Celtics have a perfect NBA starter just sitting on their bench

The best teams also have high-level role players who are borderline stars. Think Derrick White. Aaron Gordon. OG Anunoby. Hauser isn’t quite there yet, either.

But then there is a third category: The role player who meshes perfectly with the stars. That’s Hauser to a tee.

 

First and foremost, Hauser is one of the best three-point shooters in the NBA. He shot 42.4% from beyond the arc last season on 5.9 attempts per game. That percentage ranked 11th in the league amongst qualified players. Of the top 20, only five didn’t start a majority of the games they played in—Hauser, Norman Powell, Garrison Matthews, Cason Wallace, and Isaiah Joe.The Celtics have a perfect NBA starter just sitting on their bench

 

The real key to Hauser’s starter-level talent is his defe nse.