My faith in Exum has been broken

[stitches]

I think watching Frank Ntilikina last couple of days broke my confidence in Exum. He's everything I wanted Exum to be + more. And the more I watched him the more I realized he has things that Exum never had and never will and those things are much more important in the league than marginal advantage in speed.

Exum was a great youth player and I was super high on him and I've been one of his biggest defenders on this board, but his handle and his shot were never good(and I expected he will improve but he has not progressed at all in those areas). He relied on quickness to beat people off the dribble and draw fouls and we've seen this just doesn't cut it in the league - you cannot live in the league on quickness when even when you beat your man, you don't have the touch to finish in the paint or the shot to pull up from midrange. I'd trade a bit of Exum's quickness for a lot more skill and shooting. With his shooting mechanic(his shot is a set shot), I don't EVER see him being able to shoot off the dribble consistently. Frank Ntilikina pulls up without a problem or hesitation, step backs... crossover into pullups... His handle is still shaky in traffic like Exum's, but I think I trust his skill and handle and shooting RIGHT NOW much more than I trust Exum's ... ever.

I think my faith in Exum has been broken... believe me, I'd love nothing more than for him to prove me wrong. A couple of years ago I got my first ever NBA jersey and was an Exum one, I really believed in him, but for various of reasons(the injury being the main one) it seems like he's not anywhere close to where we expected he'd be at this point. Of course, I'm open to be proven wrong, but at this point I'd say - I will believe it when I see it... Does that make me a bad fan?

 

[Jeditiger]

Dante is young and still has a lot of growth potential. If you think about it, he and Lyles are at about the same point in their careers considering he missed a year to a knee injury. I think we just need to be more patient. When the light does come on for him, he could be brilliant.

 

[addictionary]

I think watching Frank Ntilikina last couple of days broke my confidence in Exum. He's everything I wanted Exum to be + more. And the more I watched him the more I realized he has things that Exum never had and never will and those things are much more important in the league than marginal advantage in speed.

Exum was a great youth player and I was super high on him and I've been one of his biggest defenders on this board, but his handle and his shot were never good(and I expected he will improve but he has not progressed at all in those areas). He relied on quickness to beat people off the dribble and draw fouls and we've seen this just doesn't cut it in the league - you cannot live in the league on quickness when even when you beat your man, you don't have the touch to finish in the paint or the shot to pull up from midrange. I'd trade a bit of Exum's quickness for a lot more skill and shooting. With his shooting mechanic(his shot is a set shot), I don't EVER see him being able to shoot off the dribble consistently. Frank Ntilikina pulls up without a problem or hesitation, step backs... crossover into pullups... His handle is still shaky in traffic like Exum's, but I think I trust his skill and handle and shooting RIGHT NOW much more than I trust Exum's ... ever.

I think my faith in Exum has been broken... believe me, I'd love nothing more than for him to prove me wrong. A couple of years ago I got my first ever NBA jersey and was an Exum one, I really believed in him, but for various of reasons(the injury being the main one) it seems like he's not anywhere close to where we expected he'd be at this point. Of course, I'm open to be proven wrong, but at this point I'd say - I will believe it when I see it... Does that make me a bad fan?

Nah of course not. Everybody has their limit of patience. A regular Jazz fan is probably more tired of things going wrong than most fans in the league. That's cause the balance between expectations and achievement was always dense. Both promising but never getting there. Exum is a big part of it. Everyone wanted to leave the franchise to his hands after him breaking out but sometimes you need more time than you expect for things to happen. I think he will become something. I just don't know the size of his courage as an attacker. He is too young mentally to be evaluated eternally about that.

 

[Hekate]

I felt the same with Enes but Exum is different. He will find his niche in the league. He just needs to get comfortable and it's hard doing that when you are coming of an ACL.

 

[franklin]

I felt the same with Enes but Exum is different. He will find his niche in the league. He just needs to get comfortable and it's hard doing that when you are coming of an ACL.

Do you think he will get as good as Mack someday?

 

[Saint Cy of JFC]

I think watching Frank Ntilikina last couple of days broke my confidence in Exum. He's everything I wanted Exum to be + more. And the more I watched him the more I realized he has things that Exum never had and never will and those things are much more important in the league than marginal advantage in speed.

Exum was a great youth player and I was super high on him and I've been one of his biggest defenders on this board, but his handle and his shot were never good(and I expected he will improve but he has not progressed at all in those areas). He relied on quickness to beat people off the dribble and draw fouls and we've seen this just doesn't cut it in the league - you cannot live in the league on quickness when even when you beat your man, you don't have the touch to finish in the paint or the shot to pull up from midrange. I'd trade a bit of Exum's quickness for a lot more skill and shooting. With his shooting mechanic(his shot is a set shot), I don't EVER see him being able to shoot off the dribble consistently. Frank Ntilikina pulls up without a problem or hesitation, step backs... crossover into pullups... His handle is still shaky in traffic like Exum's, but I think I trust his skill and handle and shooting RIGHT NOW much more than I trust Exum's ... ever.

I think my faith in Exum has been broken... believe me, I'd love nothing more than for him to prove me wrong. A couple of years ago I got my first ever NBA jersey and was an Exum one, I really believed in him, but for various of reasons(the injury being the main one) it seems like he's not anywhere close to where we expected he'd be at this point. Of course, I'm open to be proven wrong, but at this point I'd say - I will believe it when I see it... Does that make me a bad fan?

George Hill shoots a set shot and he pulls up off the dribble just fine.

Sent from my A0001 using JazzFanz mobile app

 

[stitches]

I felt the same with Enes but Exum is different. He will find his niche in the league. He just needs to get comfortable and it's hard doing that when you are coming of an ACL.

It's not the ACL. I expected him to struggle overall and all I wanted to see was some progression in aggressiveness(which he has done) and skill development(which I would contend he has done ZERO of). I didn't expect him to be useless with ball in his hands. And he is useless. Against any sort of pressure he coughs it up like a Pez dispenser. He cannot break a single defender, let alone split a double team. His handle is bad. Have you seen a good PG with straight up bad handle? His ball security is horrible. And he has no off-the-dribble pull up game. Like AT ALL!! ZERO! List me the successful PGs in the modern game without ANY sort of pull up game. Hell even horrible shooters like Elfrid Payton and Rondo pull up every now and then from the elbow.

Those are the two things that scare me most about his future right now - bad handle for a point guard and zero mid-range game and pull up game in general. And the worst thing is - with his type of shot, I really don't know how he will develop a pull up game. His is a set shot. I don't think you can be even remotely successful in the pull up game with this type of mechanics.

So yeah, to the person above who said "he's still young". Yes he is... the problem is that I don't even see a path for him to be a good PG offensively. To me he seems like an off guard, who cannot shoot. He is in essence slightly better offensively Andre Roberson(hopefully he gets as good defensively as Roberson is).

 

[stitches]

George Hill shoots a set shot and he pulls up off the dribble just fine.

Sent from my A0001 using JazzFanz mobile app

It's not just that it's set... it's the type of set shot it is. It's awkward as **** and he needs a ton of space to get it off! Please tell me I'm not imagining this. I seriously cannot see him EVER being successful in the pullup game with this shot.

 

[Goodluckchuck]

Nah of course not. Everybody has their limit of patience. A regular Jazz fan is probably more tired of things going wrong than most fans in the league. That's cause the balance between expectations and achievement was always dense. Both promising but never getting there. Exum is a big part of it. Everyone wanted to leave the franchise to his hands after him breaking out but sometimes you need more time than you expect for things to happen. I think he will become something. I just don't know the size of his courage as an attacker. He is too young mentally to be evaluated eternally about that.

Great post! And I agree. Most are hung up on the idea that he is a bust. But I don't think we have given it enough time. I think most of our expectations came from the media and the front office saying he's going to be a star. I never bought that. I didn't see anything shocking from him during the draft highlights other than his first step. That I was shocked by. Cause it was crazy fast. But that doesn't translate much in the NBA. You watch college kids come in and 90% struggle with the speed and physicality of the game. Exum is one of those 90%. But he has one thing we were told that not many have. The mental drive to do it. And maybe, just maybe this is what the coaching staff knows and is doing. To hopefully light that fire. So he wants to continue to get better. In the mean time we as fans need to be patient and realize that he's young coming off a knee injury. And that he's still a pup. And if he turns out to be a bust. So be it. Isn't the first time a guy was drafted with high expectations that didn't pan out. But we as fans shouldn't give up on him because of it. He's still a part of the team we go crazy for and are passionate about.


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[SoUjazzfan]

Nah of course not. Everybody has their limit of patience. A regular Jazz fan is probably more tired of things going wrong than most fans in the league. That's cause the balance between expectations and achievement was always dense. Both promising but never getting there. Exum is a big part of it. Everyone wanted to leave the franchise to his hands after him breaking out but sometimes you need more time than you expect for things to happen. I think he will become something. I just don't know the size of his courage as an attacker. He is too young mentally to be evaluated eternally about that.

I couldn't agree more! I think if Hill can mentor him and he is willing to work at his game he will be a decent player. Too much pressure (and perhaps expectation)has been placed on him without anyone to really teach him the game at this level. I'm still holding out hope but everyone needs to have patience and let the process take place. Would help if Hill could stay on the floor more than a couple of games at a time. I really hope Exum is more durable than it appears he will be also.

 

[Chargers Jazz Angels]

exum again is very young and coming off a sever injury. I dont want to be an exum apologist but come on he is learning the hardest position in the NBA. I am happy with Hill for the next 3 to 5 years. Let Exum learn the game from a pro. Besides he will be on a cheap contract when he does eventually explode on the scene.

 

[stitches]

exum again is very young and coming off a sever injury. I dont want to be an exum apologist but come on he is learning the hardest position in the NBA. I am happy with Hill for the next 3 to 5 years. Let Exum learn the game from a pro. Besides he will be on a cheap contract when he does eventually explode on the scene.

Oh I don't mind us trying to develop him. I'd love for him to succeed and make me eat crow. Just, my expectations and hopes for him have plummeted lately. As I said in the first post - I will believe it, when I see it.

 

[MVP]

Which brings us to a question...are the Jazz going to extend his rookie deal if he is going to show that he is way behind projected learning curve ( partially because of ACL injury). Knowing how conservative Jazz are with rookies and how rarely they extend just on potential ( what rookies they extend in last 15 years - AK, Hayward, Deron, Favors, Gobert, Burks and Millsap, thats it right?) I doubt we will see Exum in Jazz uniform past his rookie contract unless he makes huge improvement next year.

 

[Shad]

Oh I don't mind us trying to develop him. I'd love for him to succeed and make me eat crow. Just, my expectations and hopes for him have plummeted lately. As I said in the first post - I will believe it, when I see it.

You're right dude. This forum believed for years that Tomic was ever going to come over or that Kanter was going to be a beast. Look how that turned out LOL

 

[Game6Conley]

Exum's gonna be fine, it's not like he isn't improving.. If anything, hopefully some of his lackluster play will result in a nice cheap deal next summer. He'll hit his stride eventually.

 

[Handlogten's Heros]

I think watching Frank Ntilikina last couple of days broke my confidence in Exum. He's everything I wanted Exum to be + more. And the more I watched him the more I realized he has things that Exum never had and never will and those things are much more important in the league than marginal advantage in speed.

Exum was a great youth player and I was super high on him and I've been one of his biggest defenders on this board, but his handle and his shot were never good(and I expected he will improve but he has not progressed at all in those areas). He relied on quickness to beat people off the dribble and draw fouls and we've seen this just doesn't cut it in the league - you cannot live in the league on quickness when even when you beat your man, you don't have the touch to finish in the paint or the shot to pull up from midrange. I'd trade a bit of Exum's quickness for a lot more skill and shooting. With his shooting mechanic(his shot is a set shot), I don't EVER see him being able to shoot off the dribble consistently. Frank Ntilikina pulls up without a problem or hesitation, step backs... crossover into pullups... His handle is still shaky in traffic like Exum's, but I think I trust his skill and handle and shooting RIGHT NOW much more than I trust Exum's ... ever.

I think my faith in Exum has been broken... believe me, I'd love nothing more than for him to prove me wrong. A couple of years ago I got my first ever NBA jersey and was an Exum one, I really believed in him, but for various of reasons(the injury being the main one) it seems like he's not anywhere close to where we expected he'd be at this point. Of course, I'm open to be proven wrong, but at this point I'd say - I will believe it when I see it... Does that make me a bad fan?

Mother Eff.... I had the exact same realization... Frank is the only PG I like out of this year's deep group. Projected late lotto and we could definitely move to that range to get him.

 

[UB]

It's hard doing that when you are coming.

flagged for obscenity

 

[Handlogten's Heros]

exum again is very young and coming off a sever injury. I dont want to be an exum apologist but come on he is learning the hardest position in the NBA. I am happy with Hill for the next 3 to 5 years. Let Exum learn the game from a pro. Besides he will be on a cheap contract when he does eventually explode on the scene.

He won't be cheap... will get paid on potential... we don't have the money to carry him as a developing player... he will need to be good by his next deal.

I thought I was over-reacting, but Stitches is pretty even and him being in the boat is making me feel even worse about Exum.

 

[Handlogten's Heros]

It's not just that it's set... it's the type of set shot it is. It's awkward as **** and he needs a ton of space to get it off! Please tell me I'm not imagining this. I seriously cannot see him EVER being successful in the pullup game with this shot.

It is loaded up slow and too far in front of him.. the follow through is fine. I think he becomes a reliable spot up shooter, but I'm not sure if he ever gets decent off the dribble.

Ingles shot is slow but it is high and over his head.

 

[Douchebag K]

Exum's gonna be fine, it's not like he isn't improving.. If anything, hopefully some of his lackluster play will result in a nice cheap deal next summer. He'll hit his stride eventually.

he's certainly gone back into his shell in recent weeks, but the stuff he was doing early in the year was a massive improvement on his rookie year. So early into the comeback year after his ACL is way too early to judge. I don't think we'll really know what he is going to be until later next season or even the year after that.