What Did FIBA World Cup and Summer League Teach Us About Jazz Rookie Dante Exum?

It's still a bit blurry, but at least we have a clearer idea of who Dante Exum is and what he's all about. We also found out where he's at, which has turned out to be somewhat of a letdown. 

The numbers haven't been pretty through five NBA Summer League and six World Cup games. 

	Minutes	Points	FG%	Rebounds	Assists	3PT%
World Cup	12.5	2.6	.333	1.1	2	.200
Summer League	26.6	7.2	.308	2.6	2.8	.167

There's no real argument here: Exum has had his moments, but for the most part, he's struggled to assert himself early on. 

I wouldn't exactly sound the alarms—realistically, he just looks like a 19-year-old kid playing against grown men and veterans for the first time. 

The adjustment process could be long and arduous for Exum, who not only must adjust to a brand-new level of competition but a completely different role. 

As a junior player in Australia and FIBA, the offense has always run through him—the lineup's primary playmaker. 

Only that wasn't his role in Las Vegas this summer, and it certainly wasn't during the World Cup, where he averaged just 12.5 minutes a game. 

Having gone from dominating the ball to playing off it on the wing, Exum has had some trouble tapping into his strengths as a secondary option. And in turn, we've quickly learned of his shaky shooting touch and range. 

Melissa Majchrzak/Getty Images

He hit just three of 18 three-pointers in Las Vegas and one of five in Spain, and for what it's worth, he shot just 17.1 percent from downtown during the FIBA Under-17 World Championships and 33.3 percent during the Under-19s. 

Assuming Trey Burke does most of the ball-handling in Utah next season, many of Exum's scoring opportunities are likely to come in spot-up shooting situations—something that comes with the territory of spending more time off the ball. 

Given his current weaknesses as a shooter and lack of experience at the 2, chances are his field-goal percentage and efficiency will suffer greatly early on. 

Exum will ultimately have to figure out how to go about hunting for offense off the ball. Without plays designed to free him up (isolations, pick-and-rolls), he's struggled to identify and create quality scoring opportunities for himself from the wing. 

One Eastern Conference scouting director echoed these thoughts to Sean Deveney of Sporting News:

"

From what I have seen, the guy is a 1 all the way. You can try putting him at 2, but his shot is just not something you fear right now—he needs to adjust his mechanics and he needs more confidence in it. If he plays a lot of 2-guard, I would hope it does not hurt his confidence and set him back a little. That’s not his game right now.

"

In summer league, most of his shots were jumpers (18 three-pointers, only 21 twos). During the World Cup, he's been overly passive.

Based on everything we've seen, both prior to and after the draft, Exum clearly looks most comfortable and effective making plays off the dribble.

And he's a rhythm player—when Exum's confidence starts pumping after a few made plays, he's capable of generating offense at will and putting points on the board in bunches.

But rhythm is tough to build or establish with limited touches.

“I think I’m still comfortable at the point,” Exum told Jody Genessy of the Deseret News following one of his summer league games. “I still want to get the ball in my hands as much as possible. I didn’t get it a lot in my hands these last couple of games.”

While it makes sense to give Exum the rock, at this point he's just not polished enough or physically ready to execute with consistency as a scorer or playmaker.

The size and strength of his opponents have gotten to him in the paint, where he's had trouble finishing around the rim.

He's also missed a couple of floaters, now a must-have shot in the arsenal for a guard given the NBA's daunting rim protection. Over the next few years, Exum must really fine-tune his in-between game (scoring between the arc and key) to maximize his scoring chances and the threat he poses with the ball.

Still, despite the obvious holes that were exposed through 11 games, we have seen flashes—flashes that ultimately highlight his appetizing upside and mismatch potential down the road. 

For starters, Exum looked dangerously sharp off high ball screens, where he's got turn-the-corner explosiveness and willing vision as a passer. 

Of his 14 assists in summer league, seven of them actually came as a pick-and-roll facilitator.

The same Eastern Conference scouting director touched on this area of his game as well:

"

He is really, really good in the pick-and-roll. He knows how to take the pick and emerge with his head up and he sees the whole floor. He will get better with his decision-making as time goes on and he gets experience, but that ability to come off the pick like that, you know being able to see and process everything immediately with your head up, that is something you can’t teach.

"

Maybe the most promising thing we learned this summer is that Exum really does seem to have what it takes to evolve into a full-time point guard later on. 

We've learned that Exum is unselfish, a reflection of his tremendous basketball IQ. It's something scouts have been praising over the past few years. Exum keeps his head up and constantly looks for open teammates, an admirable quality no matter what position he's at.

And though this was more of a confirmation than a new development, Exum is dynamite in the open floor. The Jazz should be looking at quick outlet passes to Exum as soon as that defensive board is pulled in—because he can flat-out fly down the court and beat the defense before it sets. 

Defensively, his physical tools alone have translated to tipped balls and steals, many of which he turned into points the other way. It plays to his two-way ceiling—between his 6'6" size, length and quickness, Exum has some overwhelming tools that should translate to disruptive activity and versatility. 

Overall, we're still probably looking at a multiyear timetable with regard to Exum's ability to impact an NBA game. Shooting, finishing, picking and choosing his spots—these are weaknesses likely to hold him back while playing out of position in Utah next season.  

Don't be putting your money on Exum as a sleeper Rookie of the Year candidate, because it's not happening. 

Instead, invest in his long-term future, because the flashes were bright enough to verify the upside. 

As long as you can be patient during what should be a lengthy and bumpy period of development, I'd remain confident in Exum's chances to eventually justify his No. 5-overall value.