Jeff Teague looking to become the floor general for Atlanta Hawks next NBA season
When Jeff Teague was drafted into the NBA back in 2009 by the Atlanta Hawks, they had high hopes from the point guard. And Teague has shown considerable improvement in the three years that he has been with the Hawks.
Last season, Teague averaged 12.6 points and 4.9 assists per game in 33.1minutes of playing time per game. But there has been one issue with Teague, which is that he has not been able to become the leader of the team on the floor,
an important characteristic for any successful point guard.
The Hawks coaching staff has been on his case since he started playing for the team, and even Head Coach Larry Drew could be seen screaming from the benches last season, encouraging Teague to take a more leadership role in the
team.
With Josh Smith and Al Horford still in the Hawks line-up for next season, Teague will not be doing the bulk of the scoring next season. However, the departure of Joe Johnson from the Hawks leaves the floor open for anyone to become
the third guy along with Smith and Horford. And if Atlanta wants to make a deeper playoff run next season, Teague will have to rise up to the challenge and become that important piece of the puzzle.
This time around, even Teague realizes the need to do just that and help his team become a real contender.
"I’ve got to be more of a leader. I looked to other guys last year like Joe (Johnson) and Marvin (Williams) and those guys. I feel like it’s my time to step up and be a leader along with Josh and Al and try to be that third guy,”
said Teague while talking to the Atlanta Journal Constitution.
The Hawks were eliminated by the Boston Celtics in the first round of the playoffs last year, and have found it difficult to make a real push for the Eastern Conference crown over the past few seasons, despite qualifying consistently.
Teague knows that one big reason for their early elimination is the lack of a play maker and shot caller on the team. The spot is there for Teague to grab, but it remains to be seen whether he can step to the next level in the
progression of a point guard and become a leader to his team.
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