“Just wanna get paid” — Jeff Teague, in one instance, picking money over a championship clearly reflects what those bucks mean to him. And his $99 million NBA earnings would never have turned into a reality had Teague not survived in the league. So it’s only natural for him to be filled with self-doubt and questions after a sub-par start with his rookie season.

Appearing on a recent episode of Club 520 Podcast, he detailed down on these self-doubts. “I was going through the ringer. I shot 28% tonight. Goddamn. Gotta be at 38-40 to get this money… Was doing all that sh*t, man. I was so happy when I signed that deal. I never worried again after that,” he said. Notably, in his rookie season with the Hawks, he averaged just 3.2 points, 0.9 rebounds, and 1.7 assists per game.

Meanwhile, his field goal percentage was 39.6 and 21.9 3 point shooting percentage. With such low stats, Jeff Teague was wondering what he would do next, and he even thought of moving overseas. “I’m thinking all this sh*t. And you not realizing… You starting in the NBA, you’re gonna get a deal… And I was just stressing… I didn’t know that one. Imagine that, bro… You feel like your life on the line. Every time you play…” the NBA champ said on the podcast.

It is worth mentioning even the worst of rookie performances in the league get a chance to grow their gameplay, depending on the factor that a franchise sees could be useful for them. Steve Nash is one such example who averaged just 3.3 points, 1.0 rebounds, and 2.1 assists in his rookie season. It’s a different story that he later went on to become the assists leader, 8x All-Star, and a 2x MVP in the league.

And although he made just over $3 million on his rookie contract, a trade to the Dallas Mavericks landed him an extension contract worth 5 years, $28 million. However, it’s understandable for Teague to still be worried as the former Hawks star has mostly prioritized money as a player.

Jeff Teague’s prioritization of money over the championship

Having made close to $99.2 million from his NBA earnings throughout his career in the league, the 6’3″ player claimed an NBA championship in 2021 as well. But surprisingly, Teague may have given up the latter achievement for more money in his NBA career. During an episode of his podcast, Jeff had himself questioned to choose between a championship or a max contract.

Most of the crew present for the podcast agreed with the max contract option. And so did the former Hawks star, as he added how he hates people talking about playing just to win and not earn. “No, I just wanna get paid… I wanna lose, so I get the max. I would be on a losing team and average 20 and get a max deal than like ‘F** man, they need to trade me, I’m tryna win.’ F* all that s*t. Get Paid,” he said.

But that is not to say Teague has fallen out of love for the sport. He planned to play in the NBA for 15 years but was obliged to a premature exit after suffering left knee sprain. “I was not a basketball player anymore,” Teague remembers thinking. He instead continued with scouting and then coaching at his High School. Teague admits he wants to give back after having held all those opportunities. Now his goal as a coach is to help the kids hone their talent, get them to college, and give a good start.

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