SEPTEMBER 19: A month after it was initially reported, Hauser’s Exhibit 10 deal with the Hawks is now official, according to RealGM’s official NBA transactions log.
AUGUST 21: The Hawks are signing free agent forward Joey Hauser to an Exhibit 10 contract, a source confirms to Brad Rowland of Locked on Hawks (Twitter link). Billy Reinhardt (Twitter link) first reported the agreement between the two sides.
Hauser, who went undrafted out of Michigan State in 2023, signed a two-way contract with the Jazz last July, but was cut during the preseason. He caught on with the Clippers as a G League affiliate player and spent his rookie season with the Ontario Clippers, appearing in 50 total Showcase Cup and NBAGL regular season games and averaging 7.1 points and 3.4 rebounds in 21.8 minutes per game.
The younger brother of Celtics wing Sam Hauser, Joey made 41.6% of his three-point attempts in his college career at Marquette and MSU, then converted 36.4% of his tries from beyond the arc in the G League last season. He suited up for the Pelicans at the Las Vegas Summer League last month.
Although Reinhardt suggests Hauser will have the opportunity to compete for a roster spot in Atlanta’s camp this fall, he’s unlikely to claim a 15-man roster spot, given that the Hawks already have 15 players on guaranteed salaries and are right up against the luxury tax line.
Exhibit 10 deals – which are one-year, minimum-salary contracts that are non-guaranteed and don’t count against the cap until the regular season – can also be converted to two-way contracts. However, the Hawks already have three players filling their two-way slots, so Hauser would presumably have to outperform Seth Lundy, Keaton Wallace, or Dominick Barlow this fall to have a chance to earn a roster spot that way.
If the College Park Skyhawks were to acquire Hauser’s returning NBAGL rights from the Ontario Clippers, he could receive a bonus worth up to $77.5K if he’s waived by Atlanta this fall and then spends at least 60 days with College Park.