JULY 14: Exum has officially signed with the Mavericks, the team announced today (via Twitter).
JULY 1: Free agent guard Dante Exum is signing a guaranteed contract with the Mavericks, reports ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link). According to veteran NBA reporter Marc Stein (via Twitter), Exum will be receiving a one-year deal for the veteran’s minimum.
As Tim MacMahon of ESPN tweets, former Jazz GM and current Mavs front office adviser Dennis Lindsey drafted Exum No. 5 overall back in 2014.
Exum, who turns 28 in a couple weeks, battled major injuries during his NBA career and was limited to just 245 regular season appearances across seven years (2014-21) in Utah and Cleveland. He spent the past two seasons playing internationally after being cut by the Rockets in October 2021.
Known as a strong defensive player, Exum helped Australia win a bronze medal in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, which actually took place in 2021 due to the pandemic. He struggled with his shot throughout his NBA career, posting a .407/.305/.764 slash line, but that has changed in Europe.
In 18 EuroLeague games with Spanish club Barcelona in 2021/22, Exum averaged 6.8 PPG and 2.6 RPG on .500/.526/.837 shooting in 17.8 MPG. He had a larger role this past season with Serbian squad Partizan, averaging 13.3 PPG, 2.8 APG and 2.4 RPG on .544/.424/.859 shooting in 33 EuroLeague contests (22.9 MPG).
Exum reportedly sustained a ruptured tendon in his toe in late April during the EuroLeague playoffs after being slammed to the court by ex-NBA player Guerschon Yabusele, who plays for Real Madrid. Yabusele received a five-game suspension. Partizan was up 2-0 in the best-of-five series, but wound up losing the next three games without Exum. Madrid went on to narrowly win the championship.
Presumably Exum has recovered by now. If he maintains his shooting turnaround, his defensive versatility could be a nice fit for Dallas if he can stay healthy.
Holy hell he still plays basketball?? I remember in like nba2k14 or close to that when you start a new career he becomes your mentor.
Yes he was actually really good for Partizan Belgrade and even though they were up 2-0 on Real Madrid in the playoffs, Dante’s absence in the following games was too much to overcome so they eventually lost that series. We’ll see how good he’ll be back in the NBA but definitely deserves a chance
Yabuselle. What a bad draft pick that was
People said he was an Australian Kobe Bryant coming into draft in 2014 and were upset he didn’t fall to Lakers. What a difference a decade makes.
Dante Exum? …. Sadly, since Dallas willingly made the decision to add Kyrie Irving to the mix ….. Exum at some point will probably see meaningful minutes. The prospect of having Exum on the floor already has opponents ready to circle the calendar for the Mavericks game.
Not sure why Kyrie is going to fare any better in Dallas. They were awful with him. Kyrie pretty much burned down the house at his last two stops, Brooklyn and Boston.
Well he played really well after the trade. In fact he probably played better than Luka if we are being honest. The roster didn’t fit well around them is why the team struggled and their defense was bad. They have had one of the best off seasons in the whole league. So yeah it should be considerably better. But hey keep regurgitating the same narrative if that makes you feel better about yourself.
How have they had one of the best offseason’s in the NBA????
There was a reason why Dallas was awful with Kyrie. There was a reason why Brooklyn ultimately was awful with Kyrie.
If Exum was so “good” for Dallas last year …. Why did nobody step up with more than a 1-year, vet minimum deal?? Bruce Brown and Gabe Vincent got paid …. Where’s Dante’s money???
Exactly how good do you think Grant Williams is??? He is just a high-profile dude because he was on the Celtics. If you are gonna put him on the floor with Luka, Kyrie and Tim Hardaway …. Is he gonna be your best defender??? You saw what Jimmy Butler did to him right?? He wasn’t the only guy. Grant Williams is your premier playoff defender??? Yikes!
Imagine if this offseason Dallas had traded for Porzingis?? What if they had given Brunson the extension when first eligible. You already had those guys. Had that been your offseason this year you would be popping bottles. Popping bottles over Grant Williams? Dante Exum? Richaun Holmes? Derrick “3 years away” Lively???
“If Exum was so good for Dallas last year why did nobody sign him” well probably because he wasn’t playing for them smart guy. Anyway who was the best player on the free agent market? Kyrie by a mile. So they brought a top ten talent back for less money than FVV got from Houston. “There is a reason Dallas was awful with Kyrie” yep and most knowledgeable basketball fans know why. I explained it to you so you either can’t read or don’t understand basketball. Most likely both. They had limited cap space and draft capital and they have done a really good job getting some good pieces around the most talented backcourt in the league and they aren’t done yet. So please bring that same “Kyrie ruins everything” energy this spring when they are a top 4 team in the west. I’m sure you will change your tune by then or find some other way to embarrass yourself.