Boston Celtics Sign Sam Hauser to 4-Year, $45 Million Contract Extension

Matt Newton | Jul 21, 2024

Former Virginia men's basketball star Sam Hauser has signed a four-year, $45 million contract extension with the Boston Celtics. / Eric Canha-USA TODAY Sports

It's payday for Sam Hauser.

Less than a month after the Boston Celtics picked up his $2.1 million option for next season, Sam Hauser has agreed to a four-year, $45 million contract extension that will keep the former Virginia men's basketball sharpshooter with the reigning NBA Champion Celtics through the 2028-2029 season, as reported by ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski on Sunday.

Boston Celtics forward Sam Hauser – one of the NBA’s most accurate three-point shooters -- has agreed on a four-year, $45 million contract extension, his agent Jason Glushon of @GlushonSM tells ESPN. pic.twitter.com/TCB0iGoeyd

— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) July 21, 2024

In his third season in the NBA, Hauser averaged 9.0 points, 3.5 rebounds, and 1.0 assists per game, all career-highs, and shot 42.4% from three, the fourth-best mark in the NBA among players with at least 400 three-point attempts. He played in 79 of the 82 regular season games, including 13 starts. One of those regular season games was particularly memorable, as Hauser hit 10 threes on just 13 field goal attempts in a blowout win over the Wizards in mid-March, becoming the first player in NBA history to make 10 threes in a single game in fewer than 24 minutes.

Earlier this month, Hauser became the sixth former Virginia men's basketball player to win an NBA Championship, joining Wally Walker (1977 Portland Trail Blazers and 1979 Seattle SuperSonics), Marc Iavaroni (1983 Philadelphia 76ers), Rick Carlisle (1986 Boston Celtics and then 2011 Dallas Mavericks as head coach), Jeff Lamp (1988 Los Angeles Lakers), and Mamadi Diakite (2021 Milwaukee Bucks).

Hauser played in every playoff game and scored in double figures three times, including a 17-point game in Boston's series-clinching game 5 win over Miami in the first round and a 14-point showing in game 4 of the NBA Finals in Dallas. Hauser shot 47.8% from three in the NBA Finals and had more than a few solid defensive plays, proving that he can be a valuable piece of an NBA Championship-winning team.

The Celtics seem to agree with that assessment, making a sizable financial investment in Hauser. With this extension, which is the third extension the Celtics have signed this summer (Jayson Tatum and Derrick White), Boston's combined salary payroll of $225 million and luxury tax penalty of $210 million in 2025-2026 is expected to be the largest for a single season in NBA history.

Hauser is set to earn $2,092,344 in the final year of his rookie deal in 2024-2025, but will then earn $10,044,643 in 2025-2026 after the extension kicks in next summer. His $45 million deal, which is fully guaranteed, will net him an average of $11,250,000 over the next four years.