Orlando Magic fans had a lot to say to Eddie House on twitter after the Magic beat the Celtics for the second game in a row. Eddie responds to them on Postgame Live.
The buzzer to end the third quarter had already sounded as Sam Hauser pursued a loose ball. His momentum pulling him away from the basket, Hauser launched a haphazard, 30-foot heave off one foot from the sideline hashmark only to watch it bank home.
Hauser threw his hands in the air incredulously. Of course that shot went in.
Both the second-year forward and much of Boston’s supporting cast have been mired in a shooting slump in December. Hauser is shooting 24.3 percent since November 30 and has only made more than a single 3-pointer once in a 10-game span.
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Celtics-Magic takeaways: Banchero, Magic hand C's another loss
Is this a mere bump in the road for a team that started improbably hot, or something more concerning for the Celtics?
The production of Boston’s supporting cast was a huge part of the team’s early season success, and their dip has been thrust into the spotlight the last eight days as the Celtics have dropped four of five games (and needed a furious rally against the Lakers to win in overtime in the other).
This is not to single out Hauser. Derrick White is likewise fighting through a nasty slump having shot just 28.8 percent overall and 23.5 percent beyond the 3-point arc in December. Grant Williams, who like White has bounced between bench and starting roles this month, had some rough decision-making at the end of Sunday’s loss to the Orlando Magic.
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The Celtics as a whole have a hit a major offensive speed bump the past five games. Boston went from an historic offensive pace to being just plain offensive the last five games:
You can make a case that Boston’s shooting slump dates back to the end of November and a double dip with the Miami Heat. But Boston’s solid start to December’s six-game road trip masked some of the shooting downturn.
Boston’s offense isn’t cranking the pace the way it did to start the season. What’s maybe more concerning is the way that the Celtics have bogged down in the halfcourt with ball movement having completely evaporated at times.
Through Dec. 9, Boston was averaging a staggering 108.4 points per 100 possessions in the halfcourt, per Cleaning the Glass data. That was 5.7 points better than the next best team in the NBA and 12.3 points better than the league average.
Over the last five games, Boston is down to 85.8 points per 100 possessions in the halfcourt, or 11.5 points below league average. Only the nine-win Houston Rockets have generated worse numbers.
Boston needs to figure out how to get back to playing with the pace and ball movement that wowed the league over the first eight weeks of the season.
A bench that routinely puffed out its chest and suggested it was the best second unit in the league needs to find its groove again, too. Everyone not named Malcolm Brogdon has really been struggling over the past five games:
All of which brings us back to Hauser. His ability to emerge as a rotation presence was a huge boost for a Celtics team that needed additional depth at the forward spot. His recent slump could just be a blip. But Dec. 15 marked the arrival of trade season and, should his woes persist, it’s fair to wonder if Brad Stevens might have to explore potential depth options.
That might have already been a priority given how glaring Boston’s lack of serviceable wing depth was at times last season. Extra bodies could go a long way towards preserving Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown over the course of the 82-game season.
For his part, Hauser doesn’t seem worried about his slump. And he continues to hold up well enough defensively that his offensive woes haven’t forced him off the floor.
"Things like this happen," said Hauser. “It’s basketball, you can’t be perfect. Teams are guarding me a little bit different with the hot start to the year. But I just stick with my routine, trust it knowing that I’m still a good shooter even though I’m missing. And the best part is the shot still feels good coming off my hand. That’s always encouraging."
Hauser said defenders are sticking closer to him now and showing more respect as word spreads about his shooting ability. He’s eager to figure out how to use that attention to unlock other portions of his game. But he’s not letting the slump impact his confidence.
“Overall, my confidence is pretty good in my shot,” said Hauser. “I know that I’m a good shooter and I’m going to keep letting it fly. And they’re going to fall. It's law of averages.”
The Celtics’ offensive start never seemed fully sustainable. On the flip side, it didn’t seem like the pendulum would swing this far. Boston still has the talent to be a top-of-the-league offense but shooting fluctuation will probably prevent them from being historic.
The real question is what sort of balance can the team find between that offensive output and what this team yearns to be defensively. Boston was already trending better on the defensive end before the return of Robert Williams III last week. One way to mask any shooting slumps is to ratchet up the defense in those instances. The Celtics haven’t been able to do that consistently this season.
So that’s the challenge for interim coach Joe Mazzulla. His team has shown the potential to be great on both ends. How does he get more consistency from his team on two ends of the floor?
Every team hits a bump in the road at some point in the 82-game grind. The lingering question is whether this is just a rough patch for the Celtics, or something more nefarious.
