Game 5 Is All About Teague Time!
By John Buhler
Lost in the shuffle of excitement after the Atlanta Hawks’ must-win victory over the Washington Wizards in the Verizon Center, I failed to mention that PG Jeff Teague played an incredible basketball game. In Game 4 Teague had 26 points, 8 assists, 4 rebounds, 2 steals and just 1 turnover.
All season long when Teague takes over a ball game, Atlanta Hawks Legend and color commentator Dominique Wilkins has called these point guard dominated moments as Teague Time. In Teague Time, the Hawks were just a little better than Wizards SG Bradley Beal who’s 34 points weren’t enough to give Washington a 3-1 series lead. Instead Game 5 comes back to Philips Arena all tied up at two games apiece. The Highlight Factory will be clamoring for Kyle Korver 3’s and the clocks to run on Teague Time in tonight’s pivotal Game 5.
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In Games 3 and 4 in DC, I think that we have seen the Atlanta point guard duo of Teague and Dennis Schroder do their best impersonations of Tony Parker by attacking the Wizards at the basket. It’s like they realize we’re playing to win a championship this year. That territory is unfamiliar in Atlanta and a given in San Antonio. Coach Mike Budenholzer has thrived in both NBA cities and has Atlanta back in control of this series. All the Hawks have to do to get to their first Eastern Conference Finals is to win two of the next three games against the Wiz, two of which will be at home.
With Washington’s All-Star PG John Wall’s health in question for the rest of the playoffs due to multiple fractures in his left wrist, Jeff Teague needs to play his heart out for the rest of the series. I have confidence that Teague and Schroder can outplay Ramon Sessions and Will Bynum in these next two or three games. Should the Hawks advance to the Eastern Finals, Teague will have a much tougher challenge from his opposing point guard: either Kyrie Irving or Derrick Rose.
The Atlanta Hawks would be playing with house money in the Eastern Finals should they get there. Chicago-Cleveland’s series winner will be the favorite to win the Finals. The Bulls and Cavaliers were both picked by many NBA analysts to come out of the East this season. But these analysts didn’t account for two things: the Atlanta Hawks easily capturing the East’s top seed and Jeff Teague becoming an All-Star. The best way for the Atlanta Hawks to win games in crunch time when the pace slows down is to set the clocks to Teague Time. Move on over, rover and let Jeff take over!