Atlanta, GA – Guard Jeff Teague will remain with the Atlanta Hawks after the team announced on Saturday that it has decided to match the offer sheet the restricted free agent procured from the Milwaukee Bucks.
Teague had signed a contract with the Bucks which the Atlanta Journal Constitution reported to be worth $32 million over four years earlier in the week. By making the four-year pro a qualifying offer, the Hawks had the right to match the deal and opted to do so to retain their starting point guard.
The 25-year-old is coming off his best NBA season, with Teague posting career- high averages of 14.6 points and 7.2 assists per game while starting 78 times and helping the Hawks to a sixth straight playoff appearance. The Wake Forest product ranked eighth in the league with an 88.1 percent free throw percentage and 12th in assists.
Teague, taken by Atlanta with the 19th overall pick in the 2009 draft, is one of 10 players to have increased their scoring average in each of the past three seasons.
"We are happy to bring Jeff back to our team," Hawks president of basketball operations Danny Ferry said in a statement. "He has improved each year of his career and continues to get better. At 25, he's already been a key contributor on a playoff team and we look forward to seeing him develop into even more of a leader on our team."
Had the Hawks not matched Milwaukee's offer, Teague would have been reunited with Larry Drew, who served as Atlanta's head coach the last three seasons before taking the same position with the Bucks after Ferry decided not to renew his contract.
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