Virginia Basketball: Cavaliers land Marquette transfer Sam Hauser for 2020-21

Virginia Basketball made a huge gain from the transfer market by adding former Marquette sharp-shooter Sam Hauser.

The Hauser drama has reached its conclusion. Joey will join Michigan State and Sam will join Virginia Basketball. Due to NCAA transfer rules, Sam Hauser will have to sit out next season. In the 2020-2021 season, he will use up his one remaining year of eligibility.

After three years at Marquette, Sam has become a proven commodity. Last year, he averaged 14.9 points in 33.4 minutes per game. His point total was so low because Marquette’s offense revolved around superstar Markus Howard. But Sam made much out of his opportunities, finishing 13th in the Big East in field goal efficiency.

On the offensive end, Sam brings what Virginia looks for in two key respects. The first one is shooting, which is an impressive strength for a 6-8 small forward/power forward. Under coach Bennett, UVA is consistently one of the nation’s best three-point shooting teams. In each of the last three years, it ranked top-40 in three-point percentage.

Hauser is a career 44.5% three-point shooter. He loves to catch and shoot. Hauser excels at finding open spaces behind the perimeter and he’s also used to popping off of screens. The last point is important because using screens to get an open shot is a big part of Virginia’s offense. Defenses will have to respect Hauser’s shooting ability, which will help spread the floor. Sam is also a threat from mid-range. He led Marquette in percentage of two-point jumpers made. Check out some of his shooting highlights below:

The second key respect in which Sam fits well at Virginia is ball security. Under coach Bennett, Virginia is one of the least turnover-prone teams. Bennett emphasizes ball security because it is important for controlling tempo and for preventing easy baskets. Hauser was Marquette’s most ball-secure player. Last year, he had the nation’s 179th-best turnover rate.

Defense is more of a question mark. Coach Bennett’s pack-line defense involves a learning curve. A good example here was freshman Jay Huff, who was often effective on offense, but sat on the bench for most of the season because he was too much of a liability on defense. Hauser, though, will have a year to practice before he gets to test his knowledge in games. As an older player who has developed a greater basketball IQ, hopefully the learning curve won’t be so steep for him.

At Marquette, Sam showed that he can position himself well and clean up on the glass and defend without fouling. He ranked sixth in the Big East in defensive rebounding percentage and second in  fewest fouls committed per 40 minutes.  He was also smart about locating his man in transition. So, he’s intelligent and disciplined.

Still, Hauser is not on the same level as the stud that had occupied the forward position for Virginia, De’Andre Hunter. Hauser does not possess the same athleticism, lateral quickness, or foot speed, meaning that he will struggle to stop a lot of smaller opponents from dribble penetrating, which is a huge deal in Virginia’s defense. Scroll to 10:30 in the following video for an example of an opponent catching the ball on the perimeter and blowing by Hauser with ease. He also does not have the same strength to fight through screens, an example of which you can see at 11:41 in the same video.

Expecting Sam to be on the same defensive level as Hunter is unfair, though. Even if Hauser doesn’t have the same strength and speed, he will be at least serviceable on defense with the help of one of the nation’s best defensive-minded coaches.

Overall, I think that Sam will be much happier at Virginia than he was at Marquette. He will have his fair share in the offense because Virginia’s, unlike Marquette’s with Markus Howard, is very team-oriented. His defense won’t cost him playing time. It should surprise nobody that Sam will fit in well with Virginia. After all, Bennett, who has personal connections with the area in Wisconsin where Hauser is from, had recruited him out of high school.