Who the hell is Dante Exum?
This is a question most of Australia, America and NBA fans around the world are asking today. The 18 year old, born and raised in Melbourne has gone from being another face in the crowd to a household name. Exum not only sports a commentator-worthy name, he also has unbelievable athletic ability for a man standing at 198 centimetres. It is this athletic ability as well as his impressive scoring power which saw him selected by the Utah Jazz with the number 5 pick in the 2014 NBA draft.
However, for someone picked so early in the draft, much about Dante Exum is a mystery. It's no surprise that there's not a lot known about the man here in Australia. First and foremost, he's a basketballer. Basketball is undeniably the forgotten sport within Australia. Always getting beat down by it's older and more popular brothers. Other than the likes of Gaze, Bogut and Mills, the rest of the plethora of professional Australian basketballers could walk down any main street in Melbourne and would likely get confused for 'some tall bloke probably playing VFL'.
Not only is Exum an unknown quantity in Australia he is also somewhat of a mystery man for many in America. This is because unlike the majority of players selected in the national draft, Exum did not play any College Basketball. This was not as a result of lack of offers, in fact it was the complete opposite.
Following a breakout performance by Dante at the FIBA Under 17's World Championships in which he averaged 18 points on 45% shooting, Exum was the new name on every college teams lips. Prior to those championships Exum was expected to follow the footsteps of Bogut and Mills and go down the College path, biding his time, and testing his skills. But the hype Exum created at the World Champs gifted him a unique opportunity to nominate for the NBA draft and skip pass college. The enigma that is Exum had shown enough to get NBA scouts interested, and as such, college was not a necessary medium for him to put his skills on show.
As cliche as it sounds, I believe that for Exum, the sky is the limit. With a name like his, and a currently raw, yet fundamentally sound game supported by elite size and athletic ability for a point guard, Dante Exum has every chance to succeed at the highest level. Any highlight video of Exum will illustrate how quick his first step is. This means he is virtually impossible to stop in the open court. He seems to bypass defenders with ease, and has the skill-set to attack any defense and get to the rim.
Despite his natural ability, Exum still has a lot of work to do, and he knows that. Today he said his first point of call when touching down in Utah would be to seek out the help and wisdom of John Stockton, one of the purest point guards the NBA has ever seen. Exum's willingness to learn will stand him in good stead and by the time Dante is 25 he could be one of the best basketball players in the world. But for now, he must learn from the best, and develop his game.
I for one look forward to witnessing this over the next few seasons and solving the mystery of Dante Exum. For his, and Australia's sake, I hope that he can follow in the footsteps of Patty Mills and win a ring in a few years time.
So get out there and buy yourself an Exum jersey and enjoy the ride! Go Jazz!
Image source; nba.com
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