The J-Notes
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Untouchable to expendable: Where does each Utah Jazz player rank?

By Jared Woodcox

SALT LAKE CITY, UT - APRIL 27: Donovan Mitchell #45 of the Utah Jazz celebrates after Game Six of the Western Conference Quarterfinals against the Oklahoma City Thunder during the 2018 NBA Playoffs on April 27, 2018 at Vivint Smart Home Arena in Salt Lake City, Utah. Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Garrett Ellwood/NBAE via Getty Images)
SALT LAKE CITY, UT - APRIL 27: Donovan Mitchell #45 of the Utah Jazz celebrates after Game Six of the Western Conference Quarterfinals against the Oklahoma City Thunder during the 2018 NBA Playoffs on April 27, 2018 at Vivint Smart Home Arena in Salt Lake City, Utah. Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Garrett Ellwood/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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HOUSTON, TX – MAY 2: Dante Exum #11 of the Utah Jazz dunks the ball against the Houston Rockets in Game Two of Round Two of the 2018 NBA Playoffs on May 2, 2018 at the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Bill Baptist/NBAE via Getty Images)
HOUSTON, TX – MAY 2: Dante Exum #11 of the Utah Jazz dunks the ball against the Houston Rockets in Game Two of Round Two of the 2018 NBA Playoffs on May 2, 2018 at the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Bill Baptist/NBAE via Getty Images) /

Dante Exum

Here’s another tricky one. If Dante Exum were still under contract for a while, the Jazz would probably be wise to plan on nothing other than holding on to him. Despite some injury setbacks, he’s still just 22 years old, has shown plenty of flashes and has a ton of potential. That’s not to say he’d be untouchable, but there’s plenty of reason to be optimistic about his future and so there would be no reason to simply aim to punt on him.

However, the fact that he’s a restricted free agent makes this one a little more challenging. The same truths I explained above reply, but when factoring in how much Exum could cost, it changes his status somewhat. Exum still has the potential to be a vital part of this team, but if he receives a surprisingly high offer sheet in free agency, the Jazz may be wise to take a hard pass.

If that were to happen, they’d definitely need to shore up their guard depth and hopefully letting him go wouldn’t come back to bite them down the road. However, while Exum is a nice and promising piece to keep around, losing out on him certainly wouldn’t sink this team in the immediate future.

Verdict: Should aim to retain him, but losing him wouldn’t be the end of the world and would be better than over-paying

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