Re-Signing Dante Exum
The other tough decision facing the Utah Jazz this offseason was what to do with restricted free agent Dante Exum. Exum’s career unfortunately hasn’t been that remarkable to date, largely because of the plague of injuries he’s faced as a member of the Jazz. Still, Jazz brass has been openly bullish about his future and he’s clearly shown flashes of turning into a special player.
For that very reason, he was extended a three-year, $33 million contract, the likes of which some fans and media members alike viewed as an absolute overspend. Based on what Exum has produced thus far, it certainly is more than he’s worth. However, when considering what he’s still capable of developing into, this contract could ultimately look like a steal by the end of year three.
And the nice thing about Exum’s contract is that, while his is fully guaranteed, it’s also incentive-based much like Favors. If Dante lives up to the expectations the Jazz have placed on him, he’ll be well worth the full salary amount. However, as Eric Pincus reported in the tweet below, Exum’s cap hit is $9.6 million, which helps to alleviate some of the risk if things don’t pan out for him yet again in the coming years.
Dante Exum will have a cap hit of $9.6 mil flat over 3 - but that can drop to $9.1 mil or climb to $11 mil per based on incentives w/Utah Jazz @BBallInsiders
— Eric Pincus (@EricPincus) July 7, 2018
I’ll be honest, this contract still worries me a little bit just because Exum’s future is so shrouded with mystery. Can he still be that player that many thought he would be when the Jazz scooped him up with the 5th overall draft pick in 2014? Or will he never quite live up to the hype?
If the former is true, this decision will receive an A+++ by the end of year three. However, if it doesn’t quite work out as the Jazz are hoping, the contract could struggle to even earn a passing grade.
In other words, you could argue that the grade on this one should maybe be an “Incomplete” since it will be Exum’s performance itself that proves whether or not Dennis Lindsey was justified in making such a move. However, for the sake of remaining consistent, I’ll still give it a grade based on what we know.
Since it is so risky and is a high amount of money to throw at an unproven player, that’s going to hurt the marks somewhat. However, since Exum’s untapped potential and sky-high ceiling are still very much there, and because of the incentives that reduce some of the risk, this still feels like a pretty solid move.
Grade – B-