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Will Jeff Teague Re-Sign With the Indiana Pacers?

By Josh Padmore

Apr 17, 2017; Cleveland, OH, USA; Indiana Pacers guard Jeff Teague (44) drives to the basket against Cleveland Cavaliers guard Kyrie Irving (2) during the first half in game two of the first round of the 2017 NBA Playoffs at Quicken Loans Arena. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 17, 2017; Cleveland, OH, USA; Indiana Pacers guard Jeff Teague (44) drives to the basket against Cleveland Cavaliers guard Kyrie Irving (2) during the first half in game two of the first round of the 2017 NBA Playoffs at Quicken Loans Arena. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports /
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Set to become an unrestricted free agent for the first time in his career, Jeff Teague made it clear that he’s loved playing at home for the Indiana Pacers.

In many ways, Jeff Teague had the best season of his eight year NBA career this year with the Indiana Pacers.

He got off to a rocky start, but bounced back smoothly. Smoothly — just like his game. Teague was a reliable scoring option, passed the ball extremely well, and was the only Pacer to play in all 82 games.

After the Pacers got swept by the Cleveland Cavaliers in the 1st round of the NBA Playoffs, Jeff Teague expressed his desire to stay with the organization.

"“I love Indiana man,” Teague said. “You all know me, born and raised, tattoos on my arm. I’ve been wanting to play with the Pacers my whole life. It’s a great opportunity for me to be here and I love it.“I have no clue, I’ve never been a free agent, I don’t know how it goes. I love it here, but you never know, how they feel about me or whatever. I love being in Indiana, it’s great, got a home here. But you never know.”Asked if he wanted to go through the process of free agency to test his market value, Teague said, “I guess I have to. I’m unrestricted. I have no choice.“I just know when I first got here, they said they wanted me here, not just for a year. I took that to heart. I guess we’ll see.”"

While not a guarantee, it sounds like he isn’t planning on leaving — at least not until he has a reason to.

In what was the final year of his contract, Teague made $8 million dollars. That’s an absolute bargain. He has a chance to easily double that annual salary in free agency this summer, which could complicate things for Indiana.

Remember, when the Pacers traded for Teague, Larry Bird made it clear he didn’t want Jeff for just one year. In fact, Larry was hoping to get a contract extension done. Teague is in his prime and is playing the best basketball of his career. You would think the interest in re-signing the veteran point guard would be mutual.

Next: Larry Bird Delievers 2021 All-Star Bid

It is going to be a very important summer for the Indiana Pacers. They’re going to need to put together a very solid roster if they want Paul George to stay. George becomes a free agent in 2018. Re-signing Teague could be the beginning of that. As I always say, time will tell.

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