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Dallas Mavericks guard Dante Exum recently underwent surgery to repair a right wrist injury.
As previously reported, Exum sustained the right wrist injury earlier this month during training camp. Further medical updates on Exum’s status will be provided as appropriate.
The Houston Rockets have re-signed guard Danté Exum.
Exum (6-5, 214) was originally the fifth overall pick by Utah in the 2014 NBA Draft. He was acquired by Houston from Cleveland as part of a four-team trade on Jan. 16, 2021. Over the past four seasons, Exum averaged 14.0 points, 4.9 assists, and 4.3 rebounds per 36 minutes played.
While helping Australia to a bronze medal at the Olympics this summer, Exum averaged 9.0 ppg, 3.7 rpg, and 2.8 apg in 20.7 mpg. He also shot 56.7% from the floor and 60.0% from 3-point range.
UPDATE: This three-team trade was amended on January 16 to become a four-team trade that included Victor Oladipo and the Pacers.
The Brooklyn Nets have acquired six-time All-NBA First Team guard James Harden from the Houston Rockets as part of a three-team trade that includes the Cleveland Cavaliers.
As part of the trade, Brooklyn sends center Jarrett Allen and forward Taurean Prince to Cleveland, and guard Caris LeVert and forward Rodions Kurucs, as well as three first round draft picks (2022, 2024 and 2026) and four first round pick swaps (2021, 2023, 2025 and 2027) to Houston.
The Rockets also receive guard Dante Exum and a 2022 first round draft pick from Cleveland (via Milwaukee), and Brooklyn acquires a 2024 second round draft pick from the Cavaliers to complete the deal.
“Adding an All-NBA player such as James to our roster better positions our team to compete against the league’s best,” said Nets General Manager Sean Marks. “James is one of the most prolific scorers and playmakers in our game, and we are thrilled to bring his special talents to Brooklyn. While we are excited to welcome James and his family to the Nets, we also want to thank the players who are departing. Caris, Jarrett, Rodions and Taurean were instrumental to the team’s success and have made an enormous impact on our organization. It has been a pleasure watching them grow both as players and as people and they will always be part of our Nets family. We wish each of them and their families all the best in the future.”
“On behalf of the entire Rockets organization and the City of Houston, I’d like to thank James Harden for an amazing eight-plus seasons in a Rockets uniform,” said Rockets owner Tilman J. Fertitta. “James has provided us with so many great memories as we’ve watched him grow from Sixth Man of the Year to a perennial All-Star and MVP. My family and I also want to thank James for his many off the court contributions, including generous charitable donations and multiple annual community events. We wish James the best of luck and will always be grateful for the memories.”
The league’s Most Valuable Player in 2018, Harden (6’5”, 220) has been named an All-Star in each of the last eight seasons (2013-20), which marks the second-longest active streak of All-Star appearances behind only LeBron James (16 consecutive appearances). He’s a three-time scoring champion (2018-20) and became the first player to win three straight scoring titles since Kevin Durant did so from 2010-12. Harden was also the league leader in assists in 2017, and he’s one of just six players in NBA history who have won both scoring and assist titles in their careers, joining James, Nate Archibald, Oscar Robertson, Jerry West and Russell Westbrook. Harden’s six All-NBA First Team selections tie with Durant for the second-most among active players, trailing only James’ NBA-record 13 first team honors. He ranks 36th on the NBA’s all-time scoring list with 21,160 career points (fourth among active players) and 54th on the league’s all-time assists list with 5,338 career assists (sixth among active players).
Harden has appeared in 841 games (628 starts) across 12 NBA seasons with Houston (2012-21) and Oklahoma City (2009-12), registering career averages of 25.2 points, 5.3 rebounds, 6.3 assists and 1.6 steals in 34.3 minutes per game while shooting 44.3 percent from the field, 36.3 percent from 3-point range and 85.8 percent from the free-throw line. In the 2019-20 season, Harden recorded averages of 34.3 points on 44.4 percent shooting from the field, 35.5 percent shooting from distance and 86.5 percent shooting from the free-throw line with 6.6 rebounds, 7.5 assists and 1.8 steals in 36.5 minutes per game through 68 regular season games, earning All-NBA First Team honors for the fourth straight season and finishing third in MVP voting. Since the start of his NBA career, Harden has played in 841 of a possible 885 regular season games, and no player has appeared in more games since the start of the 2009-10 season than Harden.
The Compton, Calif., native has also never missed the playoffs in his NBA career, seeing action in 128 games (85 starts) in 11 postseason appearances and posting averages of 23.5 points, 5.4 rebounds, 5.8 assists and 1.7 steals in 35.3 minutes per contest. He’s made four trips to the Western Conference Finals in his career, twice with the Rockets (2015 and 2018) and twice with the Thunder (2011 and 2012). Harden has also represented the United States in international competition, earning a gold medal with the U.S. men’s basketball team at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London.
Harden was originally selected with the third overall pick in the 2009 NBA Draft by the Oklahoma City Thunder. Prior to beginning his NBA career, Harden spent two years (2007-09) at Arizona State, earning All-Pac-10 First Team honors twice and garnering consensus first-team All-America honors, as well as the Pac-10 Player of the Year award, in his second and final collegiate season.
Allen saw action in 234 games (180 starts) in his four seasons (2017-21) with the Nets, posting averages of 10.1 points, 7.9 rebounds, 1.2 assists and 1.4 blocks in 24.4 minutes per game. In the 2020-21 season, Allen has appeared in 12 games (five starts), registering averages of 11.2 points, 10.4 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 1.6 blocks in 26.6 minutes per game. The Austin, Texas, native was named to the Mtn Dew Ice Rising Stars as part of 2019 NBA All-Star Weekend in Charlotte during his sophomore season. He is also the Nets’ all-time leader in field goal percentage (61.2 percent) and set the franchise’s single-season record for field goal percentage last season (64.9 percent). The 22-year-old was originally selected with the 22nd overall pick in the 2017 NBA Draft by Brooklyn.
LeVert appeared in 225 games (96 starts) in five seasons (2016-21) in Brooklyn, averaging 13.1 points, 3.7 rebounds, 3.7 assists and 1.1 steals in 25.9 minutes per game. In 12 games (four starts) this season, the Columbus, Ohio, native has registered averages of 18.5 points, 4.3 rebounds, 6.0 assists and 1.1 steals in 27.8 minutes per contest. The 26-year-old was originally selected with the 20th overall pick in the first round of the 2016 NBA Draft by the Indiana Pacers and was traded to Brooklyn after the draft.
Kurucs saw action in 115 games (55 starts) in three seasons with the Nets, recording averages of 6.5 points and 3.4 rebounds in 17.3 minutes per game. The Latvian native was originally selected with the 40th overall pick in the second round of the 2018 NBA Draft by Brooklyn.
Prince appeared in 272 games (204 starts) across five NBA seasons with Brooklyn (2019-21) and Atlanta (2016-19), registering averages of 11.4 points, 4.3 rebounds and 1.9 assists in 26.0 minutes per game. In 76 games (65 starts) in Brooklyn, Prince averaged 11.4 points, 5.5 rebounds and 1.6 assists in 27.3 minutes per contest. In the 2020-21 season, the San Antonio, Texas, native has seen action in 12 games (four starts), averaging 8.1 points and 2.8 rebounds in 18.1 minutes per contest. The 26-year-old was originally acquired by Brooklyn via trade with the Atlanta Hawks on July 6, 2019.
Cavaliers guard Danté Exum left Monday night’s road game against the Orlando Magic in the first quarter with a right calf strain and did not return to action.
An MRI performed Tuesday afternoon confirmed the injury.
Exum will undergo a series of treatment and rehabilitation and is expected to miss approximately 6-8 weeks of basketball activity.
Cavaliers guard Darius Garland was held out of Monday night’s road game against the Magic with a right shoulder sprain. Garland experienced discomfort in the shoulder following the Cavs’ win on Jan. 2 at Atlanta. Further evaluation and an MRI on Tuesday confirmed the injury. Garland could miss up to one week, but will be re-evaluated daily through treatment and rehabilitation.
Here’s the Deseret News with a summary of the key Utah Jazz roster moves entering and during this past season:
Entering the 2019-2020 season, one of the narratives surrounding the Utah Jazz was the notion that they would have good depth after signing players such as Jeff Green and Ed Davis in free agency.
That proved to not be the case, as Green and Davis were an utter failure. Additionally, a third offseason signee, Emmanuel Mudiay, had a few good moments but nothing great and returnee Dante Exum was traded at Christmastime after once again not being impactful because of injury.
Before the Exum trade, which brought Jordan Clarkson to Utah from the Cleveland Cavaliers, the Jazz bench was 29th among 30 teams in points per game and routinely gave up leads the starting unit had built. Clarkson proved to be a huge boost, and Utah was 19th in bench scoring after his arrival through the end of the season. Still not wonderful, but a huge improvement.
The good news for the Jazz was that the unit of Donovan Mitchell, Joe Ingles, Royce O’Neale, Bojan Bogdanovic and Rudy Gobert was arguably the best 5-man unit in the entire league with a net rating of 13.7 in 570 minutes, and the one replacing Ingles with Mike Conley wasn’t too far behind, with a net rating of 9.7 in 381 minutes.
Conley reportedly has an early termination option for his contract this offseason, but considering his salary next season for the Jazz would be over $34 million, there’s a good chance he’ll elect to stick with the team in 2020-21.
Jordan Clarkson is a free agent this offseason. He definitely helped the Jazz this year, and they’d be smart to try to bring him back — if salary demands match up, of course.
The Utah Jazz in a trade today acquired guard Jordan Clarkson from Cleveland in exchange for guard Danté Exum and two future second round picks, pending the outcome of physicals.
The two draft picks Cleveland will receive are a 2022 second-round pick via San Antonio and a 2023 second-round pick via Golden State.
Exum (6-5, 214) has appeared in 11 games for Utah this season. In five seasons with the Jazz, he averaged 5.7 points and 2.2 assists in 18.7 minutes over 215 career contests (68 starts), and appeared in 17 career playoff games in 2017 and 2018. The Melbourne, Australia native was originally drafted by Utah with the fifth overall pick in the 2014 NBA Draft.
According to the Salt Lake Tribune, “Exum, 24, had struggled to find time in coach Quin Snyder’s playing rotation after recovering from knee surgery. While the Jazz had allocated all of their developmental resources toward Exum, the Australian disappointed during the course of his Jazz career.”
Clarkson (6-4, 192, Missouri) is in his sixth NBA season, currently averaging 14.6 points on 44.2 percent from the field, 2.4 rebounds and 2.4 assists in 23.0 minutes per game. Among qualified players, the 27-year-old ranks seventh in scoring average off the bench in 2019-20, also having knocked down the fourth most three-point field goals (59) among reserves this season.
Drafted in the second round (46th overall) of the 2014 NBA Draft by Washington (traded to Lakers on draft night), the San Antonio, Texas native has appeared in 411 career games (138 starts) with the Los Angeles Lakers and Cavaliers with career averages of 14.7 points on 44.4 percent shooting, 3.2 boards and 2.7 assists in 27.2 minutes per contest. Following his first season, he was named to the 2014-15 All-Rookie First Team.
Per the Tribune, “Clarkson, known as a slasher along the lines of former Utah guard Alec Burks, spent most of his career with the Los Angeles Lakers before being traded to the Cavs in 2018.”
And one more Tribune note: “Exum will make $9.6 million for this season and next. Clarkson’s deal, on the other hand, expires this summer and will make him $13.4 million this season.”
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The Cleveland Cavaliers are reportedly set to trade guard Jordan Clarkson to the Utah Jazz for guard Dante Exum.
According to ESPN.com, “the Jazz will send Cleveland a 2022 (via San Antonio) and 2023 (via Golden State) second-round picks, sources said. This was the NBA’s first trade since the Houston-Oklahoma City deal centered on Russell Westbrook and Chris Paul on July 11. Clarkson arrives with a $13.4 million expiring contract. Exum has two years, $19.2 million left on his contract. The Cavaliers will create a $3.83 million trade exception, which it has one year to use, ESPN front office insider Bobby Marks reports.”
The Cavs are 8-21 this season. Clarkson has come off the bench for all 29 games and is averaging 14.6 points in 23.0 minutes per game. Their focus this season should be on rebuilding for the future.
The Jazz are 18-11 and currently on a five-game winning streak. They’re a playoff competitor. And got little out of Exum during his time on the team due to major injury issues. As for this season, Exum is averaging just 2.2 points in 7.5 minutes per game, over 11 games.
The Utah Jazz have agreed to terms to re-sign forward/center Derrick Favors, guard Dante Exum and guard Raul Neto.
Favors (6-10, 265, Georgia Tech) returns to Utah as the longest tenured Jazzman on the current roster, last year becoming just the 12th player in franchise history to appear in 500 career games. The 26-year-old enters the 2018-19 season tied for sixth in all-time Jazz offensive rebounds (1,241), sixth in career field goal percentage (.518), seventh in blocks (666), 10th in total rebounds (3,690) and 15th in points (6,070).
The 22-year-old Exum (6-6, 190, Australia) is entering his fourth NBA season, appearing in 14 games last year with averages of 8.1 points, 3.1 assists and 1.9 rebounds in 16.8 minutes per contest. He returned from injury in time to appear in 10 playoff games for the Jazz, helping the team to the Western Conference Semifinals for the second-straight season. In the Second Round against Houston, Exum saw action in four games, averaging 8.3 points on 52.0 percent shooting, 2.0 rebounds and 1.0 assists in 14.4 minutes per contest.
Neto (6-1, 179, Brazil) was originally drafted by the Atlanta Hawks in the second round (47th overall pick) in the 2013 NBA Draft and was acquired by the Jazz in a draft-night trade. The 26-year-old has spent all three of his NBA seasons with Utah, appearing in 162 games (53 starts) with averages of 4.7 points, 1.7 assists and 1.2 boards in 14.5 minutes per contest. In 2017-18, he saw action in 41 games, owning averages of 4.5 points, 1.8 assists and 1.2 boards in 12.1 minutes, also playing in eight postseason contests.
The Jazz finished the 2017-18 season at 48-34, earning the fifth seed in the Western Conference Playoffs and advancing to the Western Conference Semifinals for the second-straight year. At 19-28 going into Jan. 24, the team posted a 29-6 record to close out the season, which marked the second-best record in the NBA after that date. Utah became the first team since the 2004-05 New Jersey Nets to end the regular season with a winning record after being nine games below .500 on Jan. 22
Young Jazz point guard Dante Exum played all 82 games as a rookie, averaging 4.8 ppg on 34.9% FG. He then missed his entire second season due to injury. Exum is now healthy and set to return to action, though the Jazz have now added veteran PG George Hill, which takes pressure off of Exum and allows him to develop at his own pace. Here’s the Here’s the Deseret News reporting:
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Exum, the fifth pick of the 2014 draft, said he’s never been so pumped up for a practice as he was leading up to the beginning of training camp. Sitting out for a year can do that to a hungry and enthusiastic young man.
“I was just excited to get back out there,” Exum said after the first of two practices Tuesday. “I was feeling good. I was just ready to come out there, talk when I can and run between every drill.”
Both his attitude and his body were at 100 percent as he returned from a yearlong rehab that followed his September 2015 surgery on his left knee that had been injured in a friendly international game with the Australian team.
Exum said sitting out of games — especially staying home watching on TV when the team was on the road — was his biggest challenge during that lengthy ordeal. He also struggled seeing his teammates practice and improve while he wasn’t able to do anything on the court. The mental part of this experience, one prolonged by the Jazz’s extra-cautious rehab process, could be more difficult than the physical at times. Even so, he learned patience and got to know his coach’s mindset better while sitting behind the bench during games.
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Utah Jazz guard Danté Exum will not participate in Australian National Team activities this summer.
Exum will instead focus on his preparation for the 2016-17 Jazz season. His rehabilitation and recovery process has continued to progress accordingly according to the team, and he was recently cleared for full-contact basketball activities.
“At this stage the most important thing for me right now is to continue training,” said Exum. “It’s been great to be back on the court competing, and I’m really motivated to help the Jazz have a successful season this year. My support and best wishes will be with the Boomers this summer, and I look forward to future opportunities to represent my home country.”
The 20-year-old guard underwent successful surgery to repair the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in his left knee on Sept. 3, 2015, after having sustained a tear of the ACL on Aug. 4 while competing for the Australian National Team in a game against the Slovenian National Team in Ljubljana, Slovenia. As a result of the injury, he missed the entire 2015-16 NBA season.
The 6-6, 205-pound native of Melbourne, Australia, averaged 4.8 points, 2.4 assists and 1.6 rebounds in 22.2 minutes as a rookie during the 2014-15 season and was selected to compete in the 2015 Rising Stars Challenge during NBA All-Star Weekend. He also became just the 10th rookie in Jazz history to appear in all 82 games, starting 41 of those. Exum was originally selected by the Jazz in the first round (fifth overall) of the 2014 NBA Draft.