The Boston Celtics earned their fourth consecutive win with a 140–122 road victory over the Indiana Pacers.
Jaylen Brown and Payton Pritchard led the way, combining for 69 points, 12 rebounds, and nine
assists, while Sam Hauser provided a decisive spark off the bench. Hauser caught fire from beyond the arc, scoring a season-high 23 points and knocking down seven of his eight three-point attempts. The performance marked a sharp turnaround after a brief shooting slump — he had eclipsed the 33 percent mark from deep just once over his previous five games.
Coach Joe Mazzulla said postgame that of course it’s good when Hauser hits his shots, but it’s different when guys are looking for him.
“It’s great when he’s making shots but it’s even better when we find him. I thought tonight we did a great job hunting for him — pin downs in transition, getting him going off kicks out.”
And that approach becomes obvious when you look at the film.
Here the Celtics play perfect Mazzulla ball, taking advantage of numerical outnumbering getting Hauser his first three.
Luka Garza, who did a great job screening all night, sets the screen in transition for Brown and that starts everything. The screen forces the opposing center, Tony Bradley, to be at the level at the screen for just a second. As Garza rolls, Bradley drops, but Brown does a great job attacking which eventually forces the switch. Brown gets off the ball; Hauser sets a Ghost screen and gets to the corner.
Ball finds Brown at the top of the key and that switch he got earlier pays dividends. Pacers take no chances and double Brown as soon as he dribbles. He kicks out and the right passes are made for a score.
Next Hauser gets an open look because of the Garza big body.
To start, Hauser smartly rejects the Flare Garza was about to set him because of the aggressive defense of Jarace Walker. Garza and Pritchard get into a two-man game and when the ball finds Garza again, he immediately gets it to Hauser. They get into a pick and roll, and a great screen is followed by a great shot.
Here the Celtics go to “Finland” action.
“Finland” is a screen the screener action that the Finnish national team loves to run for Lauri Markkanen and it’s when “77” action is combined with a back/rip screen into a pin down.
77 action, is two on ball screens which can also be called “double drag.”
As you see here, Baylor Scheierman is the first screen and Neemias Queta is the second one.
Then after Baylor screens, Hauser signals to him that he’s going to set the back screen.
Pascal Siakam diagnosis and avoids the screen, but the mission was accomplished. The point of the shooter setting the back screen is to get his defender to either pause for a second, get off his body to help on the screen, or miscommunicate the coverage with his teammate.
Johnny Furphy stops his feet for a little amount of time, but that gives Hauser all the separation he needs. Hauser then runs to the Queta pin down.
This slightly turns into a Flare because of how Furphy played it.
Hauser knocks it down.
On this play, the Celtics run “Horns Chest” to flow into “Turn Zoom.”
Chest is an action that the team has really loved this year. This is when a shooter sets an on-ball screen then receives a Flare screen. The on-ball screen can either be a regular one or a Ghost screen.
Usually this is the main action, and the ball would go to Hauser here for a look but right after they get into the Turn Zoom. “Zoom” is a type of dribble handoff where there is a pin down for someone to go get the handoff. The “Turn” part is added here because Jordan Walsh literally turns into the pin down.
The great screen by Walsh gets Hauser so much separation from his defender, and he receives the handoff and drains the three.
Remember when Mazzulla talked about those pin downs in transition? Here they are.
Celtics are going to have Luka Garza set “Veer” screens on the next two plays. Veer screens are when a big acts like they are going to set an on-ball screen, then sprints into a pin down as you see Queta do here.
This first one doesn’t get Hauser a three but a back screen after the Veer lets him cut open and get fouled.
The very next possession, we get a really good one from Garza, opening up Hauser for a shot.
