Spartan player Joey Hauser responds to the media during individual conferences at Breslin Center on Oct. 20, 2022.
Before the days of the transfer portal, Michigan State men’s basketball graduate forward Joey Hauser sat out during the 2019-20 season, after he transferred from Marquette due to the old NCAA rules.
At the end of the regular season, right before the Big Ten tournament, COVID halted sports, ruining MSU’s chances at a tournament run and ultimately hurting Hauser’s development.
Head Coach Tom Izzo emphasized how the pandemic prevented Hauser’s growth during the team’s on-campus media day.
“As I’ve said, COVID has done a lot of things to a lot of people,” Izzo said. “He was one that I thought that affected.”
Hauser said he is more confident about his abilities as a player heading into his final year at MSU, especially after some challenging seasons.
“You kind of lost the love for the game a little bit because of the circumstances that year,” Hauser said. “It was really hard during COVID to find your groove, getting your confidence, but I feel really good about where I'm at right now.”
Where Hauser is at heading into the 2022-23 season
Despite the setbacks he’s faced in his collegiate career, Izzo said Hauser had a “phenomenal summer.”
“He looks more like the player that I thought we were getting,” Izzo said. “Since the day he decided to come back for that extra year, he’s been really, really good.”
In his second season with the Spartans, Hauser dropped from 9.7 points per game to 7.3, but with more scorers on the team in 2021-22, he took half as many shots per game as he did in 2020-21. He also improved his three-point efficiency by over 6% and his free throw percentage jumped from 72% to 86%.
Two areas Izzo said Hauser has recently improved in are shooting and defense.
“He brings the shooting that we needed, he shot the ball extremely well,” Izzo said. “I think he’s finally over hesitations of that. He’s one of my smartest players and he’s guarding better. He’s lost a little bit of weight which I didn’t think was good until I watched him move his feet and guard and I think that’s been really good.”
Although Izzo said he thinks there are multiple players on his team with leadership potential, he thinks Hauser is ready to accept some of that responsibility.
Hauser said he wants to be a leader during his last season, which includes being named an All- Big Ten conference player.
“(I want to) be able to lead this team, and I think as a team that we can surprise some people,” Hauser said. “Personally, I want to be an All-Big Ten player, and I want to be a guy that gets awards and stuff like that. That's what I've always wanted, and for a while there, it was hard.”
Hauser said continuing to shoot the ball more is the first step to achieving his All-Big Ten conference player goal.
“All my teammates want me to shoot more,” Hauser said. “When I’ve shot more in practice, the ball’s gone in, so just keep doing that.”
Overall, Hauser said he’s ready to step in wherever his coaches and teammates need him.
“I’m gonna do whatever they need me to do,” Hauser said. “I might not want to play the five position, but if they need me to, I’m gonna, but I’m hopeful we got some five men that can stay out of foul trouble.”
With a non-conference schedule full of tough opponents, Hauser said he’s gonna soak in every moment.
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“Last year we kind of had a tough schedule like that, but we get to go on a ship this year,” Hauser said. “This is gonna be my last year doing this, so every game is gonna be special.”
