Atlanta Hawks guard Jeff Teague, a key to the Hawks' rebuilt offensive attack going into the 2012-13 season, sprained his ankle in Atlanta's preseason game against the New Orleans Hornets on Thursday night and will not return to the game.

The Atlanta Journal Constitution's Chris Vivlamore reported the injury late Thursday night, after Teague was a last-minute addition to the Hawks' starting lineup in preseason action. With the Hawks up big on the Hornets in the second half, Teague was forced to leave the game with the injury.

Teague stepped up for the Hawks in the 2011-12 season, posting 12.6 points per game to go with 4.9 assists per game and 1.6 steals. The fourth-year player out of Wake Forest saw his production surge in the 2011-12 season after scoring less than six points per game in each of his first two seasons with the Hawks.

For his career, Teague is averaging 6.9 points per game.

This story originally appeared on SBNation.com.