Jeff Teague, PG

Perhaps it was fitting that Teague and forward James Johnson announced their intentions to enter the 2009 NBA Draft a day apart, as both entered the Wake Forest program following that same process back in 2006. A speedy and versatile athlete, Teague can play the point or off-guard position and proved that he has the ability to score in bunches. He possesses a lightning quick first step that allows him to blow by defenders and the staff regarded him to be the Deacons' most accurate all-around shooter.

An excellent defender who was among the Atlantic Coast Conference's leaders in steals the last two seasons, Teague combined with Ishmael Smith to give Wake Forest one of the quickest back courts in the country. Coming off a breakout season in 2008-09 in which he burst onto the national scene, Teague became the 13th player in school history to earn All-American honors.

Teague was rated the eighth-best point guard and 36th-best prospect in the nation according to Scout.com during his senior year at Pike High School. He was ranked by Rivals.com as the ninth-best point guard and the 57th-best prospect nationally. He also ranked by Rivals as the third-best recruit in the state of Indiana and was listed as a four-star recruit by both Rivals and Scout.

Teague led the Red Devils to a 20-5 record as a senior, averaging 22 points, four assists and two steals per game. He was named first-team All-Conference and All-County, along with being selected his team's MVP. He averaged 12.5 points, four assists, three rebounds and two steals as a junior.

Along with playing AAU ball for Spiece Indy Heat, Teague saw his stock rise in the summer of 2006 with his performance at the ABCD camp in New Jersey. He was also selected to participate in the 2007 Hoosiers Reunion All-Star Classic, held at the Historic Hoosier Gym in Knightstown, Indiana, site of the movie "Hoosiers."

In his first season at Wake Forest, Teague saw action in all 30 games with 21 starts. He was named to the Atlantic Coast Conference All-Freshman Team and received votes for ACC Rookie of the Year. He was chosen as ACC Rookie of the Week four times, becoming the first Deacon since Chris Paul (2003-04) to win the award multiple times and was one of just four freshmen in the six BCS conferences to receive four or more Rookie of the Week awards in 2007-08.

That season, Teague averaged 13.9 points per game to finish second on the squad, as he combined with Johnson to become just the fourth set of freshmen to rank 1-2 on their team in scoring and the second duo to accomplish the feat with a winning record. He led the team with 55 steals and in three-point field-goal percentage, shooting .395 (32 of 81) on the year. He also ranked second on the team in assists with 74 and in minutes played with 29.7 per game.

Teague started all 31 games at point guard in 2008-09, becoming Wake Forest's first All-American since 2004-05 and the 13th All-American in program history. He was a finalist for the Bob Cousy Award, the Wooden Award and the Oscar Robertson Trophy. He was named ACC Player of the Week twice, and chosen to the All-Tournament Team at the 76 Classic after leading Wake to the championship.

He scored his 1,000th career point vs. Cleveland State, ending the year with exactly 1,000 career points, becoming the 45th player in Wake Forest history to reach the milestone. Teague led the team in scoring with 18.8 points per game and also paced the Deacons in assists (110), steals (58), three-point percentage (44.1 percent), free-throw percentage (81.7 percent) and minutes played (32.0 mpg). He ranked third in the ACC in steals (1.9 spg), fifth in scoring, seventh in assists (3.5 apg), seventh in field-goal percentage (.485) and ninth in free-throw percentage.

Positives: Might be a better fit at the two-guard spot due to his scoring mentality, but showed in 2008-09 that he is able to create shots for others and displays the quick hands, lateral quickness and ball handling skills to earn more than just a few minutes at the point … Has valid scoring instincts, especially when slashing to the rim, as he shows the explosive quickness to be creating coming off the dribble and finishing in transition … Aggressive scorer who uses his body well to draw contact and get to the foul line, where he demonstrates the high release point to be very successful (81.2 percent free-throw shooter) … Lacks the size you look for in a two-guard, but he has excellent leaping ability and aggression driving to the basket … Has the sudden burst and quick first step to penetrate and the quick release, along with the range to connect consistently shooting from the perimeter (shot 44.1 percent from three-point range last year) … Solid spot up shooter with the ability to draw contact or separate from the defender to elevate and execute a quick mid-range jump shot … Even though he lacks bulk, his average of 7.8 finishing attempts per game indicate that he has more than enough ability to get to the rim (needs to do this more often though, as he seems to be more comfortable scoring with his pull-up jumper coming off the dribble) … Lacks discipline playing the point, but did improve his decision making last year, doing a better job of locating the open teammate, especially on pick-and-rolls and dish-and-drive plays (better in the open court than in half-court action, though) … Improved his overall strength before to his sophomore year, evident by the aggression he showed and contact he drew when driving to the basket (can charge hard or simply change direction in an instant, showing no hesitation putting the ball in when he gets around the rim, but can get a bit reckless in his drives and must improve his touch to finish more at the basket) … Compensates for a lack of ideal size you look for in a two-guard, as he uses his long wingspan well (6'7") to contest shots and take his man off the ball in the passing lanes … Shows the lateral agility, body control and footwork to stay in front of the shooter when defending on the perimeter … Uses his change of direction agility effectively, along with crisp spin moves to slash to the basket with great ease … Has the balance to take off-kilter shots with the defender in his face and when he slips underneath to split double teams, he can deliver at the rim with a quick finger roll … Very effective ball thief, ranking with the ACC leaders in steals in each of the last two years 113 in 61 games), as he stays low in his stance and uses his wingspan to reach around and take the shooter off the ball … Has the speed to get out in transition and create his own shot … Can be a bit predictable when he puts the ball on the floor (scored 51.3 percent of his field-goal attempts from his right, compared to 39.4 percent from the left, and 77 percent of his jumpers come off the dribble), but has valid instincts off the dribble (fouled 16.6 percent of the time on his drives to the basket) … Savvy shooter who uses his array of fakes and hesitation moves to fly past the defender, especially using screen or isolation plays … Has the mid-range shooting ability to fade away and fire off a jumper or can just pull up and deliver a soft floater from 5-10 feet away from the basket … Shows a good handle when utilizing crossovers and consistently puts pressure on the defense with his foot speed.

Negatives: Does a good job of drawing contact, but needs to do a better job of protecting the ball when driving into a crowd (loose dribble leads to lots of turnovers) … Struggles to gain separation when playing in the half-court set, resulting in a poor assist/turnover ratio (has problems shooting off screens) … Needs to gain confidence working from his left side (made just a little over 39 percent of his field-goal attempts with his left hand) … Plays with good aggression, but that does lead to a lack of discipline, as he does not always secure the ball well in catch-and-shoot situations (has too much wasted motion, which decreases his release time) … Decent perimeter defender, but his overall defensive commitment (help defense especially) is lacking … Wildly inconsistent passer (too many no-look types), as he seems to lack great court vision … In tight quarters, he will revert to an unorthodox shooting style (fires the ball off from waist length) … Tends to lose focus on the court when he plays without the ball in his hands … Has too much reliance on his mid-range jumper, as he will just pull up and shoot, even when given enough space for him to simply drive to the basket for the easy lay-up … Needs to improve his basketball IQ, as he will more often than not just fire off the ball when facing double teams rather than look for a better scoring option with an open teammate (turned the ball over close to 20 percent of his possessions when playing in this situation) … Overall defensive skills are lacking (better on the perimeter). He will leave his feet often and too early trying to alter a shot or just stand by and watch a shooter penetrate, as Teague will get out of his stance and give up a side.

Compares To: MONTA ELLIS, Golden State -- Teague is a much more polished shooter than Ellis, but both seem to play better with the ball in their hands. Teague is an aggressive scorer with blazing court speed, but even with his improved strength he struggles in the half-court set and lacks discipline when he puts the ball on the floor. He can pick up a few minutes as a point guard, as he lacks the size you look for from the two-guard spot, but he needs to show better ability to create for others and greatly improve his assist/turnover ratio before a team can be comfortable letting him control the action.

--Report by Dave-Te' Thomas

Became Wake Forest's first All-American since 2004-05 and the 13th All-American in program history, earning second-team honors from The NBA Draft Report, NABC, USBWA and The Sporting News while garnering third-team accolades from FoxSports.com and honorable mention from the Associated Press … Selected as a finalist for the Bob Cousy Award, the Wooden Award and the Oscar Robertson Trophy … Chosen as a mid-season candidate for the Naismith Trophy and named first team NABC All-District … Second-team All-Atlantic Coast Conference pick by ACSMA, finishing just three points shy of earning first-team honors … Named ACC Player of the Week twice, winning the awards in back-to-back weeks on 1/12/09 and 1/19/09 … Chosen to the All-Tournament Team at the 76 Classic after leading Wake to the championship … Led the team in scoring with 18.8 points per game (584 total) … Also led the Deacons in assists (110), steals (58), three-point percentage (.441), free-throw percentage (.817) and minutes played (32.0 mpg) … Ranked third in the ACC in steals (1.9 spg), fifth in scoring, seventh in assists (3.5 apg), seventh in field-goal percentage (.485) and ninth in free-throw percentage … Scored 19.3 points per game in ACC contests … Scored in double figures in every game and holds the ACC's longest current double-digit scoring streak of 35 games … Tied for the ACC lead with three 30-plus point performances and finished with 12 20-plus point performances on the year … Led the team in scoring 17 times and in assists 15 times.

Saw action in all 30 games with 21 starts … Named to the ACC All-Freshman Team and received votes for ACC Rookie of the Year … Chosen as ACC Rookie of the Week four times, becoming the first Deacon since Chris Paul (2003-04) to win the award multiple times … One of just four freshmen in the six BCS conferences to receive four or more Rookie of the Week awards in 2007-08 … Named as the Rivals.com National Freshman of the Week on 2/20/08 … Averaged 13.9 points per game to finish second on the squad, as he totaled 416 points … Combined with James Johnson to become just the fourth set of freshmen to rank 1-2 on their team in scoring and the second duo to accomplish the feat with a winning record … Led the team with 55 steals, an average of 1.8 per game … Also led the Deacons in three-point field goal percentage (.395; 32 of 81) on the year … Ranked second on the team in assists with 74 and in minutes played with 29.7 per game … Shot 80.3 percent (114 of 142) from the free-throw line, including 50-for-60 in the final five minutes of the game … Led the team and all ACC freshmen in scoring with 16.4 points per game in conference play … Made 44.2 percent (23 of 52) of his three-pointers in ACC games … Finished among the league leaders in steals (fifth) and scoring (16th) … In conference games only, he ranked among the ACC's best in free-throw percentage (9th) and scoring (10th) … Scored in double figures 21 times, including 19 of his final 22 games … Scored 20-plus points six times and led the team in scoring 10 times while leading the Deacons in assists nine times.

Teague started 52 of 61 games at Wake Forest, becoming the 45th player in school history to score 1,000 points (16.4 ppg), as he made 315 of 682 field goals (46.2 percent), 77 of 183 three-pointers (42.1 percent) and 293 of 361 free throws (81.2 percent) … Secured 184 rebounds (3.0 rpg), with 153 coming from the defensive boards … Handed out 184 assists (3.0 apg), blocked 35 shots and was credited with 113 steals (1.9 spg) … Committed 138 personal fouls and 180 turnovers (3.0 pg) … Just the 13th player in school history to earn All-American honors … His free-throw percentage of .812 ranks 12th on the school career-record list … His 179 free throws made in 2008-09 are the 11th-highest total by a Deacon in a season … His 584 points scored in 2008-09 placed 25th on the school single-season record list … Tied Josh Howard for 13th on Wake Forest's single-season record chart with 58 steals in 2008-09.

No injuries reported.

SUMMER: Playing AAU ball for Spiece Indy Heat, Teague saw his stock rise in the summer of 2006 with his performance at the ABCD camp in New Jersey … Also selected to participate in the 2007 Hoosiers Reunion All-Star Classic, held at the Historic Hoosier Gym in Knightstown, Indiana, site of the movie "Hoosiers."

Attended Pike (Indianapolis, Ind.) High School, playing basketball for head coach Billy Wright … Rated the eighth-best point guard and 36th-best prospect in the nation according to Scout.com during his senior year … Ranked by Rivals.com as the ninth-best point guard and the 57th-best prospect nationally … Ranked by Rivals as the third-best recruit in the state of Indiana and was listed as a four-star recruit by both Rivals and Scout … Led the Red Devils to a 20-5 record as a senior, averaging 22 points, four assists and two steals per game … Named first-team All-Conference and All-County, along with being selected his team's MVP … Averaged 12.5 points, four assists, three rebounds and two steals as a junior.

Religion major … Committed verbally to the Deacons in September 2006, the same week as James Johnson … Son of Carol and Shawn Teague … Father played college basketball at Missouri and later played under Rick Pitino at Boston University … Born Jeffrey Demarco Teague on 6/10/88 in Indianapolis, Indiana.