BOSTON — Sam Hauser sprained his right ankle late in the third quarter of the Celtics’ Game 1 matchup against the Knicks, and never returned. He was limping by the locker room postgame, but was not using crutches when seen by reporters.
The ankle injury occurred when Hauser fouled Knicks forward OG Anunoby on a three-point attempt with 29 seconds left in the third quarter. He immediately crouched on the ground in pain and was helped to the locker room by Celtics trainer Drew Moore shortly after.
Sam Hauser’s ankle injury occurred after a first-half DNP
Hauser did not play in the first half of Monday’s game. He checked in with 4:26 left in the third quarter, and the Celtics were ultimately outscored by 7 in his minutes.
Upon checking in, he missed both of his three-point attempts, airballing his first corner attempt.
Hauser was one of two Celtics rotation players to prematurely leave Monday’s game. Kristaps Porzingis left the game midway through the second quarter with what the Celtics have described as a non-COVID illness.
Neither player returned, and both players’ statuses are in question heading into Wednesday’s Game 2. When Joe Mazzulla addressed reporters postgame, he said he had yet to speak to either player.
If Hauser is unable to return for Game 2, the Celtics’ bench would take a significant hit. The Celtics’ sharpshooter averaged 8.5 points per game on 45.1% shooting in 21.7 minutes for the Celtics this season, including hitting 41.6% from three.
