Celtics' $45 Million Forward 'Disrespected' Says Insider

A key Boston Celtics champion forward has been given short shrift in the league at large, posits a longtime NBA insider.

Dan Favale of Bleacher Report lays out the top "disrespected" players on each of the league's 30 teams as part of a fresh piece.

Favale makes the case for sharpshooting Celtics bench swingman Sam Hauser as Boston's least appreciated piece.

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"Sam Hauser is set to begin a four-year, $45 million extension next season that should put him on more radars outside of Beantown," Favale writes. "Given the relative shallowness of the Boston Celtics' roster, he's also in line for a role that will allow him to graduate from this discussion.

Favale acknowledges that Boston, which has been desperately cutting costs to (successfully) dip below the NBA's brutal second luxury tax apron with a series of summer trades and cuts, could look to shed Hauser's relatively reasonable annual salary this offseason, too — even though the team should really hold on to this talent floor spacer.

"At the same time, he's continuously mentioned as someone the team may just salary-dump as part of its one- or two-year break in contention and all-out spending. He is far from that expendable, " Favale contends.

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Hauser, 27, averaged 8.5 points on .451/.416/1.000 shooting splits, 3.2 rebounds, 0.9 assists, and 0.6 steals a night in 71 healthy games (19 starts). He's a career 42 percent shooter from 3-point land on 4.9 triple tries per, which will could certainly hold appeal for rival clubs.

"Combo forwards standing 6-foot-8 with knockdown touch don't grow on trees," Favale writes. "Through the first four seasons of his career, the 27-year-old is nailing over 40 percent of his twos and 60 percent of his threes. No other non-big in the league has done the same during this stretch while taking more than 30 total shots."

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