After three seasons in East Lansing, Joey Hauser is ready to embark on a professional career.
Hauser, who was MSU’s second-leading scorer this past season, signed a two-way contract with the Utah Jazz after last week’s NBA Draft.
“When I got that call that a team wanted to offer me a two-way contract, you think about all the work that you put in to get to that moment,” Hauser said. “My basketball journey has been — it hasn’t always been up. There’s been some ups and downs but that’s part of the process.
There was times where I probably didn’t think I could be in this position. There’s times where I considered what else am I going to do besides basketball? But I never really shied away from the work or the grind.”
Hauser has moved out to Salt Lake City and is preparing to play in the NBA Summer League in early July.
“Honestly, I just want to showcase that I’m built for this,” he said of playing in the Summer League. “I don’t want people to be surprised that I’m in this position where I signed a two-way contract when there’s a lot of people who probably didn’t think that I could play at this level.”
Hauser knows it’s on him to prove he can compete an NBA level, but he is certainly in a unique position to adjust well to life in pro basketball. Not only will he be able to seek advice from Tom Izzo and his wide array of basketball connections, but Hauser can also get help from his own brother, Sam Hauser, who is entering his third NBA season with the Boston Celtics.
Joey said he’s already relied on his brother throughout the draft process.
“He really helped me out just telling me don’t take a backseat to anyone, play your game and trust in what you do and believe in what you do,” he said. “Once I officially am out here as an NBA player and signed to a contract, I’m sure I’ll have a lot more questions for him. But yeah, it’s a lot different than college. It already feels that way.”