Utah Jazz: Dante Exum’s Return And Development Key For Utah’s Rise
Sporting a talented roster, the Utah Jazz seem to be the candidate to rise in the Western Conference. One piece that can contribute to that? Dante Exum.
When discussing preseason media darlings, the Utah Jazz stand second on the list behind the Minnesota Timberwolves. It makes sense, as injured dashed a potential playoff season last year.
Rolling back into the 2016-17 season, the talent looks ready to take another leap. Rudy Gobert is the best rim protector in the league, Rodney Hood and Gordon Hayward are two effective creators on the wing and Derrick Favors is one of the most underrated players in the league.
They didn’t stop adding to that collection of talent, either. They added George Hill by trading the 12th overall pick in a three-team deal with Atlanta and Indiana — shoring up the point guard position with an excellent fit in the process.
Then, they added two veterans — Boris Diaw from San Antonio and Joe Johnson from Miami — to add veteran experience to the bench.
Related Story: Utah Jazz: 2016-17 Season Outlook
The bench is intriguing, too. Alec Burks got hurt again last year but has shown the ability to space the floor. Shelvin Mack is a fine backup point guard and second-year forward Trey Lyles continues to add perimeter skills with a 6’10” frame.
The most intriguing, however, remains to be Dante Exum.
Coming from Austraila, Exum flashed everything to make him a high draft pick. At 6’6″, Exum possessed good speed, good size and top-tier athleticism. Even though he played off the ball in his first season with the Jazz, Exum was more projected to be a point guard and creator coming out of the draft. In his first season, he averaged 4.8 points, 2.4 rebounds and 1.6 assists in 82 games.
Despite his low numbers — including his ghastly 34.9 percent shooting from the field — Exum did flash a few things. For one, he used his size on the defensive end. With a near 6’10” wingspan and elite athleticism, Exum was deployed as a defensive stalwart on the perimeter and it worked. As a rookie, the Utah Jazz finished six points better with Dante Exum on the floor.
Live Feed
The J-Notes
But just as Dante Exum looked to be on the rise as a second-year player, Exum tore his ACL in the summer and was sidelined for the 2015-16 regular season. Now that Exum is entering his third season as a 21-year-old, Exum looks to come back from his injury on a retooled Jazz roster that has both removed that pressure to produce, as well as made room for Exum’s strengths.
As I mentioned before. Exum was really bad at shooting the basketball as a rookie. However, there were some interesting bright spots inside that percentage. For starters, Exum shot 67 percent at the rim and 31 percent from three. Though he’s more of a combo forward at this stage in his career, Exum looks good off the ball, being created for and using his athleticism to get to the rim.
That skillset could be best used around Hayward and Hood. Both players can not only shoot the ball, but both showed the ability to create for others on the offensive end. Lineups with Exum, Hood and Hayward intrigue me because of the size on the perimeter, the ability to defend and pester different positions and the ability to keep the floor balanced with playmaking and shooting.
I’m also curious to see if Utah uses the combination of George Hill and Exum in the backcourt.
Similar to the idea of putting Exum on the floor with Hood and Hayward, Hill’s combination of shooting and creation would allow Exum to play off the ball. The only difference is that Exum would have to create a bit more next to Hill, with George being a more hands-off point guard. The second is, again, the defense. Exum and Hill have the size to bother most guards in the backcourt and could be a dynamic defensive tandem.
There’s also a reality where Exum doesn’t play that much. The point guard position has Hill and Mack, while the wing position is stacked with four players capable of handling minutes. We also have to factor in Exum’s return from injury and potential rust.
However, it’s imperative that Utah gets Exum on the floor, especially with Hill and Mack entering free agency next season. One of the two will most likely leave, so getting Exum reps now allows them to continue their run without much of a hiccup.
The Utah Jazz will be good moving forward and I’m curious how Exum factors into that. There are spots for him to get minutes and slowly work into the rotation and thrive.
The hope is that the athleticism is still there and he improved as a shooter a bit in his downtime away from the floor. Just 21 years old entering the 2016-17 regular season, Exum is someone to keep an eye on as a potential X-factor for the Jazz.
Next: NBA Predictions: 2016-17 Win Projections For All 30 Teams
It’s just going to take some creativity to get him out there.