Dec 19, 2013; Oklahoma City, OK, USA; Chicago Bulls point guard Marquis Teague (25) dribbles the ball in front of Oklahoma City Thunder point guard Reggie Jackson (15) during the second quarter at Chesapeake Energy Arena. Mandatory Credit: Mark D. Smith-USA TODAY Sports
Derrick Rose’s torn meniscus was an obvious blow to the Chicago Bulls, but for Marquis Teague, it provided him with an opportunity to really show his worth. Well, it was supposed to be that way; however, that wasn’t quite the case.
It wasn’t until Rose injured his knee again that Teague received consistent, double digit minutes. Kirk Hinrich went back to the starting point guard position he was never meant to have, but, unlike last season, Teague had the opportunity to be his backup even with Mike James on the roster. He even got to start two games when Hinrich was sidelined with a right hamstring injury. In fact, Teague’s best game with the Bulls this season came during his first career start.
On Dec. 14, Teague played 28:15, the most minutes he had ever played up to that point in his career. In that time, he managed to go 3-for-6 from the field, 1-of-2 on threes, grabbed a rebound, dished out three assists,and get two steals and three blocks. Teague also had a 10-point game prior to that.
Aside from that, though, he hadn’t really improved upon his rookie season, and he hadn’t really produced much else despite the increase in minutes. Teague was even demoted from his temporary starting position in favor of D.J. Augustin after two games. He did, however, still play plenty of minutes in that game despite not starting.
Teague went 0-for-7 from the field in 20:12 during the Bulls’ 121-82 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers on Nov. 24. Obviously, Teague’s struggles weren’t the only problem with Chicago taking a blowout deficit, but he had opportunities to really contribute and help prevent such a deficit as opposed to just playing when the game has, ultimately, already been decided. That game was also just one of Teague’s 10 scoreless games, six of which came when he played over 10 minutes.
It was obvious early on that Teague still had his struggles playing on head coach Tom Thibodeau’s Bulls team despite having already gone through an entire rookie season and two Summer League sessions. And with Hinrich and James on the roster, there wasn’t much, if any, playing time available for him, so the Bulls assigned him to the Bulls’ D-League affiliate, the Iowa Energy, on Dec. 3.
Oddly enough, though, Teague was officially recalled from the Energy the following day after discovering James had sprained his MCL. He eventually ended up in the D-League, as Chicago reassigned him there on Dec. 26.
In eight games, Teague averaged 12.0 points, 2.5 rebounds, 4.8 assists, 0.3 steals and 3.0 turnovers in 24.1 minutes of play. He also shot 46.2 percent from the field, 33.3 percent on threes and 60.0 percent from the charity stripe. Looking past the turnovers and shooting percentages for threes and free throws, Teague put up good numbers, but, unfortunately for him, he isn’t being graded on his D-League performance.
Teague was recalled from the D-League on Jan. 15, but he didn’t receive any playing time. Rather, six days later, the Bulls traded him to the Brooklyn Nets for Tornike Shengelia.
Overall, Teague played in 19 games before heading to Brooklyn, in which he averaged 2.4 points, 1.0 rebound, 1.5 assists, 0.1 steals, 0.2 blocks, 0.9 turnovers and 1.3 fouls in 12.7 minutes of play. He received plenty of opportunities to make an impact, but his struggles were too much, and he lost his playing time.
Final Grade: D