If you look closely, you can still see heat waves from Sam Hauser’s start to the season shimmering in the Celtics’ team stats.
On Nov. 28, Hauser went 3-for-6 from deep in a 35-point win over the Hornets. That performance lifted him to a 49.4 percent clip from behind the arc on 93 attempts. The sample size was becoming increasingly noteworthy, and Hauser was one of the most impactful role players in the NBA – the Celtics’ leader in on/off numbers by a wide margin. While he was unlikely to be a high-volume near-50 percent 3-point shooter for the entire season, Hauser was clearly a major contributor.