Dante Exum

Dante Exum (born 13 July 1995) is an Australian professional basketball player for the Cleveland Cavaliers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was considered one of the best prospects for the 2014 NBA draft prior to graduating from high school in 2013.[1] He chose to bypass college and was ultimately selected by the Utah Jazz with the fifth overall pick in the 2014 draft. In December 2019 he was traded to the Cavaliers.

Dante Exum
Exum in October 2018
No. 1 – Cleveland Cavaliers
PositionPoint guard
LeagueNBA
Personal information
Born (1995-07-13) 13 July 1995
Melbourne, Victoria
NationalityAustralian
Listed height6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
Listed weight214 lb (97 kg)
Career information
High school
NBA draft2014 / Round: 1 / Pick: 5th overall
Selected by the Utah Jazz
Playing career2014–present
Career history
2014–2019Utah Jazz
2019–presentCleveland Cavaliers
Stats at NBA.com
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com
Medals
Men's basketball
Representing Australia
FIBA Oceania Championship
2013 Australia/New ZealandTeam
FIBA Oceania Youth Tournament
2010 New CaledoniaTeam

Early life and junior career

Exum was born in the Melbourne suburb of East Melbourne to American parents. He played for the Keilor Basketball Association as a junior[2] and attended Lake Ginninderra Secondary College in Canberra in conjunction with the Australian Institute of Sport. He grew up also playing Australian rules football.[3]

In April 2013, Exum participated in the Nike Hoop Summit for the World Select Team, where he recorded 16 points, three rebounds and two assists in a 112–98 win over the USA Junior Select Team.[4] In October 2013, he graduated from Lake Ginninderra and had the option to enroll in college and play college basketball during the 2013–14 season, but he decided against it.[5]

Exum competed for Lake Ginninderra in the Australian National High School Basketball Championships in December 2013,[6][7] and helped them win the eventual title.[8]

On 28 January 2014, it was announced that Exum signed with agents from Landmark Sports and that he would declare for the 2014 NBA draft.[9][10]

Professional career

Utah Jazz (2014–2019)

Exum was selected by the Utah Jazz with the fifth overall pick in the 2014 NBA draft.[11] He made his NBA debut in the Jazz's season opener on 29 October, scoring five points in 9½ minutes off the bench in a 104–93 loss to the Houston Rockets.[12] On 22 January, he scored a career-high 15 points on five 3-pointers in a 101–99 win over the Milwaukee Bucks.[13] On 1 April, he had a career-high 12 assists in a 98–84 win over the Denver Nuggets.[14] He appeared in all 82 games (41 starts) as a rookie and averaged 4.8 points, 1.6 rebounds and 2.4 assists in 22.2 minutes. Exum became only the 10th rookie in Jazz history to play in all 82 games, scoring in double figures in 13 games and leading the team in assists 11 times. He helped the Jazz to a 24–17 record as a starter and was selected to compete in the 2015 Rising Stars Challenge during the NBA's All-Star Weekend in New York.[15]

In August 2015, Exum sustained a tear of the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in his left knee while playing for Australia in Slovenia.[16][17] He underwent surgery and subsequently missed the entire 2015–16 season.[18]

Exum returned to action in the 2016–17 season. He played in 28 of the first 29 games of the season, but then sat out 10 of 11 games between 21 December and 10 January.[19] On 11 March, he scored a career-high 22 points in a 112–104 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder.[20][21]

In October 2017, Exum underwent shoulder surgery.[22] He made his first appearance of the season on 15 March 2018, finishing with 10 points in a 116–88 win over the Phoenix Suns.[22] On 30 March 2018, he scored a season-high 21 points in a 107–97 win over the Memphis Grizzlies.[23]

On 6 July 2018, Exum re-signed with the Jazz.[24] On 27 December 2018, he scored a season-high 20 points in a 114–97 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers.[25] Two days later, in his first start of the season, Exum had 13 points and a career-high 13 assists in a 129–97 victory over the New York Knicks.[26] On 7 January 2019, he was ruled out for "a couple of weeks" due to an ankle sprain that he suffered two days earlier against the Detroit Pistons.[27] His return was delayed after developing a bone bruise from his ankle sprain.[28] He returned to action on 11 March against the Thunder after missing 25 games.[29] Four days later however, he was ruled out indefinitely after sustaining a partially torn patellar tendon in his right knee.[30]

Cleveland Cavaliers (2019–present)

On 24 December 2019, Exum was traded, alongside two second-round picks, to the Cleveland Cavaliers in exchange for Jordan Clarkson.[31]

NBA career statistics
Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field goal percentage  3P%  3-point field goal percentage  FT%  Free throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game  Bold  Career high

Regular season
Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2014–15 Utah 824122.2.349.314.6251.62.40.50.24.8
2016–17 Utah 662618.6.427.295.7952.01.70.30.26.2
2017–18 Utah 14016.8.483.278.8061.93.10.60.28.1
2018–19 Utah 42115.8.419.290.7911.62.60.30.16.9
2019–20 Utah 1107.5.435.3331.0001.10.60.10.22.2
2019–20 Cleveland 24116.8.479.351.7322.31.40.50.35.6
Career 2396918.5.407.308.7661.82.10.40.25.7

Playoffs
Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2017 Utah 7012.0.407.3331.000.91.3.7.04.6
2018 Utah 10011.4.488.286.7501.41.0.1.15.1
Career 17011.6.456.316.8331.21.1.4.14.9

National team career

Exum played for Australia's junior national team at the 2012 FIBA Under-17 World Cup, where he was named to the All-Tournament Team, as well as the 2013 FIBA Under-19 World Cup,[32] where he was again named to the All-Tournament Team. 2013 also marked Exum's debut for the senior national team, playing against New Zealand at the 2013 FIBA Oceania Championship. In 2014, he played for Australia at the 2014 FIBA World Cup, where he averaged 2.7 points, 1.5 rebounds and 2.0 assists in six games.[33]

Personal life

E, Tierra, who is an international elite gymnast.[34] His father, Cecil, played college basketball at the University of North Carolina and won an NCAA championship in 1982, a team which featured Michael Jordan and James Worthy. His mother also attended North Carolina. Cecil was drafted in 1984 by the Denver Nuggets, and later settled in Australia where he played in the National Basketball League for the North Melbourne Giants, Melbourne Tigers and Geelong Supercats.[35] Exum is a passionate supporter of the Essendon Football Club,[36] who compete in the Australian Football League. Exum wore Essendon-inspired shoes during the Rising Stars Challenge at the 2017 NBA All-Star Weekend.[37]

References
  1. Mannix, Chris (26 September 2013). "2014 NBA Big Board: Wiggins leads deepest draft in years". SI.com. Retrieved 2 December 2016.
  2. D'Anello, Luke (19 November 2013). "Former Keilor Thunder basketballer Dante Exum is shooting for NBA selection". HeraldSun.com.au. Retrieved 19 November 2013.
  3. "NBA Draft: Dante Exum happy with decision to play basketball over AFL". ABC.net.au. 27 June 2014. Retrieved 27 June 2014.
  4. Kamalsky, Matt (21 April 2013). "2013 Nike Hoop Summit Game Recap". DraftExpress.com. Retrieved 21 April 2013.
  5. Goodman, Jeff (28 August 2013). "Dante Exum undecided on college". ESPN.com. Retrieved 28 August 2013.
  6. "EXUM HEADLINES 2013 AUSTRALIAN SCHOOL C'SHIPS". Basketball.net.au. 1 December 2013. Retrieved 2 December 2016.
  7. Smart, Nick (2 December 2013). "Australian young gun Dante Exum focus of attention at Australian School Champs". HeraldSun.com.au. Retrieved 2 December 2013.
  8. "ROWVILLE AND LAKE GINNINDERRA WIN ASC TITLES". Basketball.net.au. 6 December 2013. Retrieved 2 December 2016.
  9. Ford, Chad (28 January 2014). "Dante Exum declares for draft". ESPN.com. Retrieved 2 December 2016.
  10. "Australian teen Dante Exum set for NBA draft". HeraldSun.com.au. 29 January 2014. Retrieved 29 January 2014.
  11. "Jazz Selects Exum, Hood in 2014 NBA Draft". NBA.com. 26 June 2014. Retrieved 26 June 2014.
  12. "Rockets spoil Snyder's NBA coaching debut". NBA.com. 29 October 2014. Archived from the original on 25 December 2014. Retrieved 29 October 2014.
  13. "Hayward scores 24, Jazz hold on for 101-99 win over Bucks". NBA.com. 22 January 2015. Retrieved 22 January 2015.
  14. "Jazz roll Nuggets 98-84 after sluggish start". NBA.com. 2 December 2015. Retrieved 1 April 2015.
  15. "Jazz Exercise Team Options on Four Players". NBA.com. 17 October 2015. Retrieved 17 October 2015.
  16. "NBA: Utah Jazz teammate Joe Ingles backs Dante Exum after reports of season-ending ACL injury". FoxSports.com.au. 5 August 2015. Retrieved 5 August 2015.
  17. "Danté Exum Injury Update (August 6, 2015)". NBA.com. 6 August 2015. Retrieved 6 August 2015.
  18. "Danté Exum Injury Update". NBA.com. 3 September 2015. Retrieved 3 September 2015.
  19. "Dante Exum 2016-17 Game Log". Basketball-Reference.com. Retrieved 28 December 2018.
  20. "Westbrook has another triple-double, Thunder beat Jazz". ESPN.com. 11 March 2017. Retrieved 11 March 2017.
  21. "WATCH: Exum scores career-high 22 points in loss to OKC". SportingNews.com. 11 March 2017. Retrieved 28 December 2018.
  22. "Mitchell, Gobert lead Jazz over Suns for 8th straight win". ESPN.com. 15 March 2018. Retrieved 15 March 2018.
  23. "Mitchell, Exum lead Jazz past Grizzlies, 107-97". ESPN.com. 30 March 2018. Retrieved 30 March 2018.
  24. "Jazz Agree to Terms with Favors, Exum and Neto". NBA.com. 6 July 2018. Retrieved 6 July 2018.
  25. "Redick scores 24, Embiid has 23, 76ers roll over Jazz 114-97". ESPN.com. 27 December 2018. Retrieved 28 December 2018.
  26. "Gobert leads Jazz past Knicks 129-97". ESPN.com. 29 December 2018. Retrieved 30 December 2018.
  27. Irving, Kyle (7 January 2019). "Report: Dante Exum expected to miss 'a couple of weeks' with sprained ankle". SportingNews.com. Retrieved 8 January 2019.
  28. Griffin, Taylor (28 February 2019). "Raul Neto is more important than you think". slcdunk.com. Retrieved 28 February 2019.
  29. "Thunder beat Jazz 98-89 to sweep season series". ESPN.com. 11 March 2019. Retrieved 12 March 2019.
  30. "Danté Exum injury update—3.15.2019". NBA.com. 15 March 2019. Retrieved 15 March 2019.
  31. "Cavs Acquire Dante Exum and Two Draft Picks from Utah". NBA.com. 24 December 2019. Retrieved 24 December 2019.
  32. Chau, Danny (10 July 2013). "Dante Exum, the FIBA U19 World Championships, and the Purest Form of NBA Draft Nerddom". Grantland.com. Retrieved 10 July 2013.
  33. "2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup – Dante Exum". FIBA.com. Retrieved 15 September 2014.
  34. Creegan, Nick (26 June 2014). "NBA Draft Q&A: Who is Dante Exum?". FoxSports.com. Retrieved 26 June 2014.
  35. Rolfe, Peter (3 August 2013). "National Basketball Association scouts from US chasing local teenager Dante Exum". HeraldSun.com.au. Retrieved 3 August 2013.
  36. "Dante Exum kicks AFL footy through basketball hoop". HeraldSun.com.au. 1 December 2014. Retrieved 7 August 2015.
  37. "Utah Jazz NBA player Dante Exum shows his Essendon pride at NBA All-Star weekend in Rising Stars Challenge". FoxSports.com.au. 18 February 2017. Retrieved 18 February 2017.
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