Jeff Teague was thought to be all but gone from the Atlanta Hawks, but the team is not looking to go down without a fight. Teague officially signed a four-year, $32 million offer sheet from the Milwaukee Bucks, but if the team is going to get the point guard, the Hawks do not plan on helping them out.
It was first reported the Hawks would likely seek a sign-and-trade for Teague, getting either Brandon Jennings or Monta Ellis in return, but that appears to no longer be an option. ESPN.com reports the Hawks will not seek a sign-and-trade. They will either match the offer sheet on the restricted free agent of let him walk away entirely.
If the Hawks let Teague walk, they can still land Jennings or Ellis in free agency. Jennings is a restricted free agent, but if the Hawks put down an offer sheet, the Bucks will not match it because of the Teague signing. Ellis is in search of a new team as an unrestricted free agent and has to be pleased with what he has seen on the market.
Both point guards are tempting, but Teague appears to have the upper hand on both players. He is more athletic and takes smarter shots than someone like Jennings. Teague is not exactly as marquee as Jennings or Ellis, but his he is a better decision maker and more effective on defense.
The hope Teague remaining with the Hawks is slim. The point guard reportedly told Danny Ferry that he is ready to move on from the team and go somewhere else. The Bucks hired former Hawks coach Larry Drew and he is eager to bring Teague along with him. He was reportedly unhappy with the lack of urgency the Hawks showed him at the start of free agency as the team was more content with focusing on Dwight Howard. The Atlanta Journal Constitution reports that Teague asked the Hawks not to match the offer sheet and just let him go.
"They embraced me and they wanted me. They told me that. That is something I never really heard in Atlanta," Teague said.
While Atlanta has shown interest in both Jennings and Ellis, they have also been linked to Mo Williams. Atlanta has only given out one contract this offseason longer than two years, but to land a point guard like Jennings or Ellis, the deal will have to be bigger than that.
