Teague continues to impress as Hawks top Charlotte

By Bud L. Ellis

For some rookies, the middle days of October are when their NBA dreams expire.

For others — like Jeff Teague — it’s when those fantasties take flight for real.

Teague, the Atlanta Hawks‘ first-round draft pick this summer, continued to show why the organization thought so highly of the former Wake Forest star on Monday, leading Atlanta with 17 points in a 107-90 preseason victory over Charlotte at Philips Arena.

Teague needed just 29 minutes to score his 17, dish out seven assists, and continue to make an impression on his new teammates and coaching staff.

“It was a fun game,” Teague told Hawks.com. “I think I’m learning on the fly, learning quickly, trying to understand the game.”

That understanding is coming quickly for a player who gives Atlanta a young point guard to spell Mike Bibby this season. Teague leads the Hawks in scoring through three preseason games at 16.0 per contest

Coming off a loss Sunday night in Detroit, the Hawks showed plenty of bounce. Atlanta led by as many as 17 in the first half, hitting 53 percent from the floor in building an early eight-point advantage.

“We did a lot of good things tonight, which we didn’t do (Sunday) night in Detroit,” Hawks coach Mike Woodson told Hawks.com. “So it’s nice to see us bounce back.’

Joe Johnson, Zaza Pachulia and Juan Dixon each scored 14. Josh Smith and Marvin Williams added 11 for Atlanta, who plays Wednesday at Memphis.

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Wednesday, October 14, 2009 at 5:43 am by bud

Tags: Atlanta Hawks, Charlotte Bobcats, Detroit Pistons, Jeff Teague, Joe Johnson, Josh Smith, Juan Dixon, Marvin Williams, Memphis Grizzles, Mike Bibby, Mike Woodson, National Basketball Association, Philips Arena, Wake Forest, Zaza Pachulia