Player vs. Prospect: Would You Rather Have Emmanuel Mudiay or Dante Exum?

Utah Jazz rookie Dante Exum went No. 5 in the 2014 NBA draft. Emmanuel Mudiay will likely follow as a top-five selection this upcoming June. 

And neither has played a lick of college basketball. 

That doesn't make it very easy on scouts, who are forced to evaluate these kids in completely different, unfamiliar settings. 

Exum was playing high school ball in Australia before he declared for last summer's draft. Mudiay gave scouts just 12 games of film to study this year from pro ball in China, where defense is frequently laughable—nine players in the CBA average more than 30 points a game—and opposing players can be 10-20 years older.

But there's no hiding the talent each possesses, regardless of what floor it's being showcased on. 

The ultimate appeal to Exum and Mudiay stems from their dazzling athleticism and physical tools for point guards. Both prospects have terrific size and length, which plays to the mismatch they could potentially present as ball-handlers. 

	Height	Weight	Wingspan	Standing Reach
Exum	6'6"	196 lbs	6'9 ½"	8'7"
Mudiay	6'5"	200 lbs	6'8 ½"	8'4"

Exum is a bit taller and longer, while Mudiay is the stronger of the two. 

For Exum, we've seen that 6'6" size, 6'9 ½" wingspan and foot speed translate to some eye-opening defensive ability. He covers a lot of ground quickly, both moving laterally and vertically.

Per Tony Jones of the Salt Lake Tribune: 

Exum offers the versatility to cover three positions on the floor. 

Thanks to the tools Mudiay has to work with, his defensive outlook is also encouraging, though he's not quite as disciplined. 

Still, over time, Mudiay will certainly have the chance to evolve into a plus perimeter defender. 

Floor Games

Another quality that ultimately enhances both prospects' likability is that they're each willing passers and facilitators. 

If anything, Exum may actually be too passive when it comes to playmaking. His numbers haven't been very impressive (3.9 assists, two turnovers per 36 minutes), though he's also sharing a backcourt with sophomore Trey Burke. And it's forced him to play off the ball a decent portion of the time.

On the bright side, he's flashed promising instincts when it comes to finding and hitting his teammates. And that size allows him to make plays right over the defense. 

On the down side, he hasn't been overly dangerous with his breakdown ability off the bounce. He averages just 1.8 drives per game and 1.3 points off drives per 48 minutes, per NBA.com.

Sam Forencich/Getty Images

Like Exum, Mudiay has no problem prioritizing distributing over hunting for his own offense, though he does tend to lose control. He averaged 3.2 turnovers a game overseas. And once he's gotten into the lane, he has the tendency to force up some wild, off-balance finishes over rim protection. 

But it can be a nightmare for defenders to keep Mudiay in front of them. He happens to have an exceptionally tight handle. Mudiay can weave through traffic and slip through tiny gaps in order to penetrate and force the defense to collapse. 

In China, he dished out 5.9 assists per game, showing good vision off drive-and-kicks or dump-downs to big men. 

But it's ultimately his comfort level operating out of pick-and-rolls that stands out most about his floor game.

Pick-and-Rolls

Out of pick-and-rolls, Mudiay is great at freezing the defense with the hesitation dribble, drawing help defenders and ultimately finding his teammates, whether it's with a bounce pass through traffic, a lob over it or a kick-out to a shooter. 

Mudiay is just as big of a threat to attack and score off ball screens. He's extremely shifty, with the ability to change speed and direction and slice to the basket. And he's got the hops and dexterity to finish at awkward angles around challenging arms. 

Sam Forencich/Getty Images

On the other hand, Exum hasn't looked very threatening out of pick-and-rolls. Although he's only used them 18.3 percent of the time, he's racked up just 0.35 points per play. According to NBA.com, that's the worst among NBA point guards and fifth worst among every player in the league. 

Perimeter Scoring, Shooting

Neither Mudiay nor Exum is a particularly accurate shooter or sharp perimeter scorer. 

During last year's showcase period, Mudiay shot a combined 1-of-11 from downtown among the McDonald's All-American Game, Jordan Brand Classic and Nike Hoop Summit. 

Overseas, he shot 13-of-38 from deep and an ugly 57.4 percent from the line. 

However, he's competent inside the arc. Because Mudiay is so elusive off the dribble, he's able to create his own shot from every spot on the floor, which leads to lots of pull-ups and floaters—shots he's comfortable making. 

At this stage of his development, he reminds me of where John Wall was as a perimeter scorer and shooter when he played at Kentucky. Mudiay is capable from outside, and he's hit enough jumpers to suggest improvement will come, but it's clearly going to take a few years before he's knocking them down with consistency. 

In Utah, Exum's perimeter-scoring attack looks far different from Mudiay's.  

Rick Bowmer/Associated Press

Exum almost never shoots off the dribble, something he'll eventually have to learn to increase the threat he poses off ball screens and the secondary break. 

In 1,432 minutes this season, he's made just eight shots in the mid-range while shooting just 22.6 percent on all pull-ups.

Some of the blame can be placed on the fact that he's only used in 13.6 percent of Utah's possessions, per RealGM.com. In China, Mudiay dominated the ball, having registered a monster 29 percent usage rate.

Exum has ultimately done a lot of standing around behind the arc. As a rookie, 55.4 percent of his total shots have been on catch-and-shoot opportunities outside 10 feet.

He's hit 68 threes in 67 games at a 32.7 percent clip. 

Exum's spot-up shooting stroke and range look promising, though adding a pull-up to the repertoire should make it a lot easier to score inside the arc, where he's making a poor 41.1 percent of his shots. 

Exum versus Mudiay

It's tough to be too critical of Exum, given his transition from dominating the ball against teenage Australians to sharing it as an NBA pro. But his skill level just doesn't look as sharp as Mudiay's, from his scoring arsenal to his playmaking ability.

This isn't to say Exum was a poor choice for the Jazz. He just projects as a different type of player. I ultimately have questions as to whether he's built to fill the role as lead guard. To become Utah's floor general of the future, Exum will have a number of adjustments and improvements to make with regard to his approach, shot selection and floor game. 

Though the competition was nothing to write home about, we just saw Mudiay average 18 points and run the show for 12 games against grown men and former draft picks. He can get to any spot on the floor and make things happen from those spots.

"He reminds me a lot of John Wall," said SMU coach Larry Brown, per Philly.com's Marc Narducci, who Mudiay originally committed to playing for before choosing to change course and head overseas. "He is physically gifted, and he has a great feel."

While both players have big-time ceilings and loads of long-term upside, it's Mudiay who looks a lot closer to reaching his. 

He'll be in the conversation for the No. 1 overall pick as we get closer to the big day.