'Compete, compete, compete at a high level.' Teague looks to keep building Pike in second season

It is probably safe to assume there has not been a high school basketball coach in Indiana with Jeff Teague’s resume.

“It’s just us playing around,” Teague said of the podcast, which he started with DJ Wells and Brandon Hendricks in early 2023. “It’s nothing serious but I have a good time doing it. It keeps me busy and something I enjoy doing. We felt like people would like it and felt like they would enjoy the content and stories, stuff like that. It kind of took on a life of its own.”

Teague’s easygoing demeanor, storytelling ability and access to guests like Edgerrin James, Jordan Crawford, Donovan Mitchell, Rajon Rondo, Anthony Richardson and many others led to Club 520 becoming a fast-rising success story with more than 340,000 subscribers on YouTube. The podcast with Rondo, posted last month, has more than 400,000 views. Former in-state stars like 2016 Mr. Basketball Kyle Guy and 2012 Mr. Basketball Gary Harris have appeared on the podcast.

The 36-year-old Teague is not only a 12-year NBA veteran but also the current captain of the 3 Headed Monsters of the Big3 basketball league founded by Ice Cube. And, surprising even to Teague, the Club 520 podcast he hosts with two close friends has turned him into a viral superstar for his behind-the-scenes stories from his NBA playing days.

One thing podcast listeners can expect from Teague: Honesty.

“My friends are enjoying it and I’m enjoying it,” Teague said. “Some of my good friends have been able to come on and they are great guys, great people. I’m glad they shared their stories.”

Teague, a 2007 Indiana All-Star at Pike before going on to star in college at Wake Forest and play in the NBA with the Hawks, Pacers, Timberwolves, Celtics and Bucks, is going into his second season coaching at his alma mater. Before his first season, Teague said he wanted “people to know that it’s a process.”

“I don’t want people thinking in one year we’re going to be a comeback story,” Teague said last spring. “We have to work to get kids to stay in Pike Township and start from the ground up.”

Teague was not so much worried about wins and losses in Year 1 as building a foundation. The Red Devils started 3-1 but won just three games the rest of the season to finish 6-17. One of those wins, however, was against rival North Central near the end of the season.

“I inherited a group where I didn’t know the kids, didn’t know the talent level,” Teague said. “I didn’t know anything about them. I wasn’t really into expecting a certain number of wins. I just wanted to see if they got better and throughout the year, we got better. At the end of the year we got a win that we really wanted against North Central and that was like a jump start for us. I just wanted to compete and build off that.”

Pike showed promise in June that the 2024-25 season may be more successful. The Red Devils went 2-2 at the Charlie Hughes Showcase last weekend with wins over Kokomo and Northridge and losses to Crispus Attucks and Avon.

“We gotta get the guys to play harder all the time,” Teague said. “Compete, compete, compete at a high level. That’s all I care about. Winning ballgames and stuff, that’s great. But as long as I get the guys to compete and get better daily, we’ll be all right.”

Pike loses a vocal leader and productive guard to graduation in Coryell Spates (8.7 ppg) but returns most of its team, including senior guard Damon Howard (15.1 ppg, 3.0 assists) and junior guards Dezhon Hall (12.0 ppg, 2.8 rebounds) and T.J. Davis (6.6 ppg, 2.5 assists). One of the top sophomores in the state will be 6-11 Isaiah Hill, who averaged 3.7 points, 4.1 rebounds and 2.7 blocked shots in 17 games as a freshman.

“He has great defensive instincts,” Teague said of Hill. “He’s still only 14 years old so he’s still developing and growing. But the better he gets, the older he gets, the stronger he gets, he’s going to be a really talented player.”

Teague said the team’s chemistry is “still developing.”

“We’re trying to get guys to step up and be leaders in different roles,” he said. “Coryell last year was our leader, more vocal. It seems like this group is still trying to find that leader. Once we get that, I think we’ll be a better team.”

One of the changes Teague has noticed since his high school playing days is the social media world.

“I would say players are a little more catered to than when I was coming up in high school,” he said. “Everything is hands on. Everybody is a superstar now with YouTube videos and all that. Everybody has an image to uphold and a brand or whatever. It’s a little different from when I was coming up, but you have to deal with it. It’s part of what’s going on and part of the culture now.”

Teague, who retired as a player in 2021 after winning an NBA championship with the Milwaukee Bucks, has been able to watch more games now, especially the Pacers’ run to the NBA’s Eastern Conference finals.

“It’s an exciting group,” he said. “They play fast. I dream to have a team play like that. They play hard, play fast. To have a guy like T.J. McConnell come of the bench and be the spark that he was, it was cool. I was really excited for the city but also watching the team play.”

Teague is not sure what the future holds for his coaching career but would like to see this Pike team keep building this season.

“I haven’t really thought about it,” he said. “I want to see this group keep going, have a winning season and compete. That’s my goal. I want to see this group get better.”

Call Star reporter Kyle Neddenriep at (317) 444-6649 .

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: 'Compete, compete, compete at a high level.' Teague looks to keep building Pike in second season