WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Jeff Teague's would-be dagger turned out to be the antithesis to his personalized Game 4 strategy. In a gameplan predicated on interior punishment, the All-Star point guard's decision to hoist an outside jumper with time running short and the Wizards making yet another fourth-quarter push, though contradictory to his primary objective, was also necessary.
Teague's critical possession began under the two-minute mark, an ugly, broken play with the shot-clock hitting single digits. There were options, there are always options are with his version of quickness. As Hawks big man Paul Millsap set a screen below the 3-point line, Teague contemplated, watching as his defender, Ramon Sessions, sagged off below the pick. An entire game's worth of aggressive drives taught its desired lesson. So Teague, exploiting the given space, let the shot fly.
The Wizards made their run in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference semifinals series, featuring a wide-open Paul Pierce 3-pointer to potentially force overtime, but Teague's 3-pointer to put the Hawks up 104-97 with 72 seconds remaining turned out to be the clincher. In a game the point guard described as a "must-win" in order to avoid falling behind 3-1, that shot was needed. But Teague's play through the previous 47 minutes helped deliver the 106-101 win, and helped the East's top seed reclaim home-court advantage.
"He's the head of the snake for us," Hawks wing Kyle Korver said.
The Hawks hit the reset button after their Game 3 loss. Teague's play was simply the physical manifestation of that decision.
After Sunday's practice on the campus of George Washington, there was a general sense of discontent, a team tired of searching for its identity, of answering for its shortcomings. Teague, speaking for himself as well as backup Dennis Schroder, seemed fed up. The two speedsters saw too many holes in Washington's defense sans injured All-Star point guard John Wall to continue their passive approach. Someone had to hit the gas pedal.
The Hawks did not try to hide their intentions, either: They were going to attack in Game 4. Teague went directly into the teeth of Washington's defense from the beginning. Sixteen of Atlanta's first 19 points came in the paint. He set up camp inside, picking the Wizards apart from the inside-out when things were clicking on Monday night. Schroder followed suit when his name was called, then coach Mike Budenholzer turned to his two-point guard lineup for pivotal stretches with one obvious goal: Aggression.
"That's what we gotta do, we gotta establish something down low in the paint. We've gotta get those paint touches. When we do that, everything else will work out," said Teague, who had said at practice that the team needed to utilize it's pick-and-roll sets over its motion offense more often. "We still were in motion, but we did some different options out of it. We just played pick-and-roll a little faster, made the game more uptempo."
The results, at least offensively, spoke volumes: Teague and Schroder finished with a combined 40 points, 16 assists and three turnovers.
Teague led the team in points (26) and assists (8), his most dominant performance this postseason. The Hawks hit 47 percent of both their field goals and 3-pointers, their best shooting performance of the series. They created easier shots and kept pressure on Washington's defense.
When veterans like Korver and Al Horford say this team depends on Teague to set the team's pace -- and, as a function of that, its tone and efficiency -- it's noteworthy. As long as Wall is resigned to the bench with five non-displaced fractures in his left hand and wrist, Teague is a crucial advantage in this matchup.
"I think every team talks about that: Having someone on your team, whoever that guy is for you, really being aggressive, getting to the basket," Korver said. "It just sucks defenses in. It opens up drive-and-kick lanes. ... We're always going to shoot a bunch of 3s, that's kinda who we are. But if we can get into the paint first, it just helps the percentages go up."
Teague's emphasis on efficiency in the pick-and-roll delivered. Both Hawks point guards had struggled in the two-man game of late -- Teague in particular. Entering Game 4, both players ranked in the league's bottom third in points per possession as the ball-handler in pick-and-rolls despite running a higher percentage of such plays than any player outside of Memphis guard Mike Conley this postseason. Here's a look at their underwhelming numbers through the first nine playoff games:
That's a significant drop-off from their regular-season numbers. Teague grew into one of the better pick-and-roll players in the league in Year 2 under Budenholzer, while Schroder started picking up on how to harness his speed and limit his mistakes. Things have been different during this playoff run. In short, the Hawks were running the two-man game more often but with less success.
Perhaps aggression was the key ingredient. The Hawks flashed back to midseason form, living in the lane with their collective foot firmly on the gas pedal.
"I just came out in attack mode," Teague said.
They finished tied with Washington with 48 points in the paint, but the presence of Teague and Schroder on the interior opened opportunities.
Of course, it also helps that Millsap was sufficiently hydrated and fed after dealing with flu-like symptoms before Game 3 and Horford found a lethal rhythm with his midrange jumper. The fact that the two big men combined for 37 points was both a product of the two point guards' play and a necessary factor in opening up wider driving lanes to slash through.
"It's kinda difficult, but everybody gets their breaks. We're so deep that everybody can get a breath and come right back," Schroder said of staying aggressive. He also stressed that the team saw ways to go after the Wizards with two big men running drag screens in the fourth quarter of Game 3. "I told Jeff during the game, the whole time, like, 'Keep going, keep going.' And he's telling me the same thing. I think that's motivation for us.
" ... The whole time I was telling him, 'Go to the basket, go to the basket. They can't stop you.' He did it."
Atlanta's insistence on punishing Washington in the pick-and-roll even factored into Budenholzer's lineups. For the first time this postseason, the Coach of the Year leaned on his two-point guard unit, including crucial stretches in the fourth quarter. It was a fairly common occurrence during the regular season, but Game 4 saw a playoff shift.
(There are side effects to this strategy. The Teague-Schroder combination forces one of the two to guard Wizards star guard Bradley Beal. That was a downside to Monday's performance: The lightning-quick 6-foot-5 scorer posted a career-high 34 points to keep the Wizards alive. It's a balancing act.)
Still, judging by Budenholzer's comments, expect to see some version Teague and Schroder later on in this matchup.
"I thought both he and Jeff were both very good," Budenholzer. "We could put the ball in either one of their hands and get them in attack mode, get them in aggressive-type of situations and then on the backside you had a second one who could play second pick-and-roll and get to the paint. Playing those two together had some good moments."
Unfortunate circumstances litter the Eastern Conference. Wall's indefinite injury hovers over this resurgent Wizards team like a dark cloud. Across the bracket, Cleveland's Kevin Love is out for the season and Chicago's Pau Gasol has missed time. Atlanta is missing much-needed wing defender Thabo Sefolosha. No team finds itself at full strength.
These are often the undesirable side effects to 82-plus games, but even side effects need to be exploited. As Wall watches, Teague has no choice but to press the issue as this series shifts back to Atlanta. He's the head of the snake. And he has an opportunity to put his signature on this moment.
