Milwaukee Bucks Chasing Jeff Teague Again?

With the Atlanta Hawks reportedly shopping Jeff Teague, the latest Milwaukee Bucks trade rumors suggest they could be interested again.

The Atlanta Hawks are reported to be shopping their former All-Star point guard Jeff Teague, and so, the Milwaukee Bucks have been inevitably suggested as a potential destination.

Due to their own uncertainties at the point guard spot, it hasn’t been unusual for Milwaukee to be linked with available point guards, but there is more to this rumor than that. Jeff Teague has a history with the Bucks.

It’s one of the bigger “what if” scenarios in recent Bucks history. It was the summer of 2013 and Larry Drew had just taken over as head coach. There was plenty of uncertainty about Brandon Jennings‘ position with the team and the front office decided to go after Jeff Teague as a replacement, a point guard Drew was more than familiar with.

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Milwaukee offered Teague, a restricted free agent at the time, a four-year $32 million deal to come to the Bucks. It was a good offer, but it wasn’t exactly pushing the boat out.

Either way, Teague accepted. The Hawks were on the clock to match the deal and it looked likely that Teague would soon be a Buck, with the player even voicing his desire to leave for Milwaukee to the Atlanta front office.

The Hawks didn’t listen, and after three days they matched the deal, tying down one of the league’s more underrated point guards on what has become an increasingly nice piece of value for the Hawks.

Teague has gone from strength to strength, as have the Hawks, culminating in an All-Star appearance in last year’s 60 win, Eastern Conference finals season. The change also altered the landscape of the current Bucks, even with Teague staying in Atlanta.

The Bucks pursuit of the Indianapolis native marked Brandon Jennings cards in Milwaukee. After chasing down a replacement, it was going to be very difficult to turn back to Jennings and pretend he was their guy.

The team’s interest in Teague was ultimately the catalyst for the deal that brought Brandon Knight, Khris Middleton and, ultimately, Michael Carter-Williams to Brewtown. It’s a landmark moment that often goes unnoticed, yet now it’s time for it to return to the spotlight.

It’s clear the Bucks are willing to make deals. For as much as the will they, won’t they debates have reverberated around the fanbase in recent weeks, a recent Q&A general manager John Hammond gave to Charles Gardner of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel suggests that it will be business as usual for the front office. The Bucks are always shopping, and always prepared to pull the trigger on a deal that could improve the team.

"This time of the year we’re doing our due diligence. We’re on the phone; we’re talking to the other teams. We’re making calls; we’re receiving calls. We’ll evaluate and as the trade deadline draws near, we’ll see if there’s something we can do that may help our team."

Due diligence is effectively what Mike Budenholzer has suggested that the Hawks are doing with not just Teague, but many of their players too. It certainly wouldn’t be too much of a reach to suggest that they may have ended up dialing each others’ numbers at some stage over the past month or so.

What would Jeff Teague bring to the Bucks though? How would he fit in? What would it take to get him? Is he really worth pursuing?

Let’s answer all of that and more.

Next: What's Teague's Game All About?

Teague’s Game

The best way of describing Jeff Teague’s game to those who may not watch him all that regularly is that he’s an exceptional “turn of pace” point guard. That’s a pretty big compliment for a point guard too.

Teague does something that’s maybe lost on many of the current crop of point guards blessed with incredible skill and athleticism, he dictates the play.

He can shoot it, but he’s not going to chuck up shot after shot. He’s an outstanding driver, but his first instinct is no longer to put his head down and power his way to the basket every time the ball reaches him. He’s also outstanding with the ball in his hands, but he’s attuned to moving the ball constantly so you’ll rarely find him over-dribbling.

As a result, all of this forces Teague to fly under the conventional radar of top class point guards, yet it’s his subtlety and understanding of how to play the game that makes him the perfect floor general for a team interested in winning rather than individual numbers.

When Mike Budenholzer came to Atlanta, he told Teague:

"We’re going to do something totally different than what you’re used to."

As a disciple of Gregg Popovich in San Antonio, Coach Bud had spent many years working alongside Tony Parker, and for many the discussion with the Hawks was centered around how Teague could be made to resemble the Frenchman, if at all.

Budenholzer installed his own free-flowing system with the Hawks, built upon fundamentals of accountability, spacing, constant movement, and five men working as a unit. If you were to simplify it, you’d call it a read and react offense.

That didn’t alter Teague’s style of play as much as it challenged him to think a lot more, while also rewarding him with greater freedom to get to work. Teague would have to be the brains behind the team’s frequent use of the pick-and-roll, but he’d also have to pick the openings afforded to allow him to drive and take advantage.

He has thrived in that environment.

Teague ranked fourth in the league in drives per game in Budenholzer’s first two seasons and in spite of a slight drop off is still as high as sixth this season.

His assist numbers are always solid if not spectacular, but there’s more to them than that. Teague is a regular fixture in the top 15 in the NBA in secondary or hockey assists, and this season he’s as high as second. He’s averaging 2.0 secondary assists per game, a mark only bettered by Stephen Curry.

As a shooter, he ranks sixth among starting NBA point guards in catch and shoot at 45.2 percent, a factor which leads to him being a much improved three-point shooter. Just below 39 percent from deep this season, teams have to respect him, and he can always let fly from above the break.

In three seasons under Budenholzer, Teague is averaging 15.9 points, 6.6 assists, 2.6 rebounds and 1.4 steals per game.

Teague’s stats on a basic level are solid and impressive, but what you see above are better indicators of how he operates. The former Wake Forest Demon Deacon has developed into a player who doesn’t over-exert himself and plays with his brain rather than his body.

Next: How Would Teague Fit In Milwaukee?

Would He Fit As A Buck?

It doesn’t feel like an understatement to say that Teague could help the Bucks to transform their offense in a hurry. Milwaukee is always looking for ways to stretch out their offense to create better spacing and more importantly to create greater opportunities for everybody on the floor.

First of all, Teague’s ability to knock down the long ball, as well as regularly making mid-range twos would help to open up the court for the Bucks in some very obvious ways.

His speed could also stretch opponents out if the Bucks were to push the pace in transition though. Many have called for the Bucks to play at a higher pace, as when they play faster in short bursts it’s very difficult to stop them. Teague would be the ideal point guard if the Bucks decided to move in that direction.

Whether taking the ball to the rim himself, dropping off to runners like Giannis Antetokounmpo and Jabari Parker, or kicking out to Khris Middleton in the corner, there are a variety of ways in which Teague could boost Milwaukee in that department.

Teague is also accustomed to playing with one of the league’s best passing big men in the form of Al Horford, and that could allow him to bring some new offensive wrinkles out in Greg Monroe‘s game.

The Hawks do a great job of disguising cuts out of pick-and-rolls, and dating back to Josh Smith‘s days as a Hawk or more recently with Paul Millsap, Atlanta has loved to go to Al Horford via high post passes, only to have Teague cut back door providing an easy dime for his center.

That sort of action would certainly not be beyond a combination of Monroe, Parker and Antetokounmpo, and as deadly as it could be with Teague, it’s something they should be looking to run more of with Michael Carter-Williams regardless.

On the defensive end, Teague isn’t exactly known as one of the league’s best defenders, but he’s certainly serviceable. He’s become attentive on-ball and is one of the NBA’s better pick-pockets. There aren’t many better ways to energize a building than a Teague transition dunk started off by a sneaky steal.

That’s not to mention that although he’s slight in stature, Teague has exceptional timing. This pays dividends when it comes to defense as the Hawks guard is one of the best chasedown block specialists in the league. That might be hard to believe, but take a look for yourself.

Teague is not a lockdown defender liable to bring back the Bucks defense of last year by any means, but he’s so accustomed to constant off-the-ball movement on offense that if Milwaukee was ever to really focus in on a heavy switching defense again, he wouldn’t be fazed.

Next: How The Bucks Can Get Him?

Trading for Teague

This is where it gets really difficult.

First and foremost, assuming that Teague is a certainty to be traded remains very far-fetched at this point. The Hawks are a talented and experienced team, who are well positioned in the East, and will be hoping to make a charge as the season nears its business end.

They were the Eastern Conference finalists last year and with the coaching uncertainty in Cleveland, I bet they’ll be hungry to make another run again. That in itself makes it unlikely that they’re going to frivolously trade away their experienced, starting point guard.

There’s even more to factor in too. Al Horford, who is arguably Atlanta’s face of the franchise, is in the final year of his current contract. Many would expect Horford to re-sign with the Hawks in the summer, but there are no certainties in the NBA, meaning this could potentially be Atlanta’s last go around with this current group. All the more reason to make the most of it, I would have said.

Then there’s Atlanta’s other point guard and the man who many feel is ready to take Teague’s place. Any move involving Teague would see the mercurial Dennis Schröder step into his place in Atlanta, but that’s certainly not as good of an idea as many casual observers of the Hawks might think.

Schröder is exceptionally talented, has good instincts and astounding physical gifts for a point guard. Whether it’s in Atlanta or elsewhere, it’s certain a lengthy career as a starter awaits him. The problem is that he still suffers from inconsistency, his basketball IQ has a long way to come, he can be prone to costly errors and he can struggle with closing out games.

The ceiling with Schröder is much higher, but on a team not dominated by limelight hungry stars, there’s a lot to be said for Teague’s steady and calming play.

Even if we’re to get back to assuming that the Hawks do pull the trigger, it then comes down to finding players who may be suitable fits for not only Atlanta’s style, but also the stage they are at in their pursuit of success.

The Hawks are certainly going to be looking for more than a random package of mediocre players on expiring contracts. Any player they take back will need to be able to help them, within their own role, straight away.

So for the Bucks, let’s start with which players could fit into Atlanta’s roster and philosophy.

Jerryd Bayless could certainly be a fit as a backup point guard if the Hawks wanted to move forward with Schröder in the driver’s seat. His 42.6 percent from deep would be to Mike Budenholzer’s liking, and on an expiring deal would not be too costly for the Bucks to part with.

Khris Middleton would certainly be a perfect fit in Atlanta in terms of their roster needs, but with the exceptional progress he has made I’m not even sure if it would be possible for the Hawks to construct a deal that would convince the Bucks to trade them Middleton.

Let me be clear on that too, it would be a terrible move for the Bucks.

If Greivis Vasquez could prove that he can come back and be healthy, his ability as a passer and a shooter could also hypothetically work out for Atlanta, but that’s a big if in itself.

The problem for the Buck is that that seems like the end of the list of players who could possibly feature in a deal.

In spite of the unblinking love some Bucks fans have for him, I’d be shocked if the Hawks felt that O.J. Mayo, a 38 percent shooter with a questionable attitude could help them. Nor would a team who already has backup big men like Tiago Splitter and the young duo of Edy Tavares and Mike Muscala, be overly interested in Miles Plumlee or John Henson.

The Hawks have often be rumored to be interested in Greg Monroe in the past, so in the unlikely event that the Bucks wanted to try something else and the Hawks were set on moving on from Horford, maybe that could create some options either.

You can probably feel the way this is going though. There isn’t really an obvious Hawks-Bucks deal on the table. If Milwaukee wants to bring Jeff Teague in, they’re going to need the help of a third, or maybe even a fourth team to get a deal done.

Any such deal relies on the good graces of others too, as they would be accommodating the Bucks by collectively gifting them Jeff Teague. That’s a messy business that comes down to everything somehow falling into place at once.

Milwaukee would not only have to find a team that are eager to move pieces that would interest Atlanta, but that would also have interest in some of the Bucks scraps from the dinner table.

The challenge of acquiring more talent via trade while still committing to a young core is that without being prepared to move picks (something the Bucks are likely reluctant to do following the Greivis Vasquez deal), that leaves very little that might appeal to trade partners.

Unfortunately in this case, I don’t think it’ll be possible for the Bucks to have their cake and eat it.

Next: Is Teague Worth Going After?

Should The Bucks Even Try To Chase Teague?

The best way to sum this up is by getting you to cast your mind back to strange, twisted and surreal time from earlier in this season. Remember when the Bucks started O.J. Mayo at point guard?

Many Bucks fans enthused that that experiment was actually a great idea, as Mayo could offer a calming influence on the ball, wouldn’t get in the way of the team’s supposed main offensive options, would look to make smart decisions on both ends and would offer enough of a shooting threat for opposing defenders to be forced into respecting him.

Jeff Teague fits that prototype and list of criteria perfectly, except here’s the best part: he’s got real point guard instincts, real talent, is a former All-Star, and has 18 months remaining on a bargain contract.

If the Hawks are really looking to move Teague, Milwaukee needs to try and find a way to get him.

Let’s be clear on this, the Bucks shouldn’t move any major core pieces, but they need to have the nerve to try, and instigate, and manufacture a deal that could somehow result in Teague landing in Milwaukee.

It would put the Bucks in a completely different position for next season, where they would be allowed a season long trial run of their young core being partnered by the expiring trio of Jeff Teague, Greg Monroe and head coach Jason Kidd.

If the Bucks can find a smart way to make a deal work, there’s close to no risk involved.

In terms of character, Teague can be vocal when he needs to be, but has an easy going demeanor. He’s not going to mouth off to the point of stifling his young teammates when it comes to their own confidence or expression on the court.

All the 27-year-old is interested in is winning, and feeling valued by an organization and his teammates.

Back in that summer of 2013, Teague was ready to embrace the challenge in Milwaukee, having felt the love.

"It was a perfect situation for me, being familiar with the coaching staff and talking to them on the phone. They embraced me and they wanted me. They told me that. That is something I never really heard (in Atlanta). Once somebody said they actually wanted me to be a part of their future I’m all for it."

The coaching staff may have changed since then, but much of the rest of that sentiment could still be relevant in any Teague discussion. Teague wanted to be a part of the future when it was grim back then, where now he could be a part of a much brighter future in Milwaukee.

Teague will almost certainly have no say on where he ends up, but the Bucks would have to note that if it did end up being Milwaukee, he’d likely be happy to take on the challenge.

Next: Milwaukee Bucks: No Need To Trade Anybody This Season

Three years later, could Jeff Teague end up a Buck? Milwaukee fans should start hoping for a fairytale ending.