Why I have settled on Dante Exum...

[OrlandO]

i really hope we are not bad enough to draft one of the good big men in the next years draft

Plot twist: Hennigan's plan was always to suck for 3 consecutive seasons like OKC did, not 2 seasons like we've all been expecting...

[Def Swami]

IF we draft Exum, I do feel that he would be perfect at the sg next to Oladipo... the problem then becomes Afflalo. I have a real hard time giving up a super efficient 20ppg scorer for a rookie. I doubt Milwaukee gives up an unprotected pick for anybody anyway.

Long time supporter of AA. Big fan... If we get the right kind of value in return then I'll survive. #lookingtothefuture

To me, if we draft Exum (or Smart for that matter), I would like to trade a package of players for an all-star caliber PF to go with Vuc.

Oladipo
Exum
Harris/Harkless/WoNK pick (whichever we have left after the trade)
All-star PF
Vuc

Afflalo/Harris/WoNK for Al Horford

[eyriq]

i really hope we are not bad enough to draft one of the good big men in the next years draft

Plot twist: Hennigan's plan was always to suck for 3 consecutive seasons like OKC did, not 2 seasons like we've all been expecting...

Goodness that would suck.

[Orlwillbeback]

i really hope we are not bad enough to draft one of the good big men in the next years draft

Plot twist: Hennigan's plan was always to suck for 3 consecutive seasons like OKC did, not 2 seasons like we've all been expecting...

iam sorry, but if we dont win at least 32 games next year, there is no reason to think we will ever be good with this group.

[thelead]

Long time supporter of AA. Big fan... If we get the right kind of value in return then I'll survive. #lookingtothefuture

To me, if we draft Exum (or Smart for that matter), I would like to trade a package of players for an all-star caliber PF to go with Vuc.

Oladipo
Exum
Harris/Harkless/WoNK pick (whichever we have left after the trade)
All-star PF
Vuc

Afflalo/Harris/WoNK for Al Horford

That seems like we're overpaying but I do love Horford...

[cedric76]

Sorry if this looks selfish of me for creating a thread, but I think I have good points to say and we'd probably have to go back a little while to find a Dante Exum thread... so yeah, I hope I don't get punished for this.

Soooo....



At one point or another all of us die hard Magic fans will have their "A ha!" moment when they decide who they want as their top choice in the draft. This season has been hard to watch the Magic continue to lose, but the reward is having the chance to pick near the top of the Draft.

I have floated around who I've wanted up to this point, but I have finally settled in on the man named, Dante Exum and here's why...


1) AA is not the ideal fit for this team.

Even though I have been a strong supporter for AA since Day 1, there are couple of things that don't sit well with me.

1 - His prime years are limited and not ideally aligned for our rebuild. As a player in his own right, I fully believe that AA can be a key cog on a Championship team. Unfortunately, not according to the young make up of this team. He's better suited to a team that is closer to being a contender and with brighter stars around him.

2 - Our ceiling with him is limited. You might remember the thread I made on Lance Stephenson as a FA target for us. It's not just because Lance is a young budding star with an all around game, but because he gives us a major advantage in something that AA doesn't. BALL MOVEMENT. The game of basketball is so beautiful when the ball is being handled by players with accute passing vision. Stephenson will command big money in the offseason, but Dante Exum can be our solution to this.


2) Exum at SG not PG.

All along I have been thinking of Exum as our PG of the future IF we were to draft him. Then the light came on! Exum can be our SG of the future! The more I see of the Oladipo PG experiment, the more I get convinced that he can pull it off. That thought solidifies even more when I think about putting a SG next to him with good ballhandling and passing skills. With Exum we can have exactly that! Being taller (and I assume longer) than Dipo, it's a natural fit. I no longer have the ire against him being a "scoring PG" rather than a "pure PG". Putting him at SG plays him at his strengths and mitigates Oladipo's weaknesses as a PG. Together they are a powerful combination.


3) The 2 PG rotation match up.

Playoff basketball always boils down to match up advantages. Unique match up combinations tend to have their moments in time until other teams catch up. Remember the ole 4 out, 1 in philosophy we ran with Dwight? At first there was a huge question mark on how Rashard and Turk would play together on the floor at the same time, but in time it became a strength for us. The reason was because we were able to take advantage of the Stretch 4 using Shard's great marksmanship. Traditional teams were forced to weaken their post defense and Dwight penalized them for it.

A 2 PG rotation of Oladipo and Exum is starting to get back us back to beating opponents using a unique match up problem. No other team in the NBA has the ability to put two big guards next to each other where both players can pass the ball AND both players pose nightmare problems on the offensively AND defensively. Our length and speed would be hard to match up against. Our options for moving the ball would be doubled. Explosive would be an understatement!

We have been seeing a few teams experimenting with this with some success as Golden St did in the playoffs last year with Curry and Jack... and Phoenix did earlier this year with Bledsoe and Dragic... and the obvious, but not really obvious one is the Pacers with Hill and Stephenson. Having a guard at the 2 spot with PG vision is a match up strength that the Magic can execute with the backcourt of Oladipo and Exum. Nobody has fully executed it in the way that the Magic could and THAT can reap major dividends.


4 - Exum's own potential

There are players in this draft with higher floors than Exum. There are players in this draft that have proven more than Exum. There are players in this draft that are farther along in their development than Exum. There are players in this draft with far less risk than Exum. All that said, Dante Exum is the one player in this draft that I believe really has unlimited potential.
Jabari Parker has a high floor, but is capped athletically and trapped in the form of a SF/PF tweener. Not explosive enough for NBA SFs and not big enough to defend NBA PFs. Andrew Wiggins has the skills, but no fire. He lacks the hunger in his demeanor to want to have it all. He's too comfortable settling and needs to find that eye of the tiger. Embiid has unlimited potential in my mind, but the game is going away from needing a superstar big man. On the other hand, you most definitely do need and have ALWAYS needed a superstar wing.

Exum's potential reminds me of the time when we debated about who was better... Okafor or Howard. I fully remember how close and heated a debate it really was. But the Magic chose the guy with the unlimited potential and it was the right choice. I hope we do the same thing and go with Exum. He could be that once in a decade type talent that many once believed that Wiggins was supposed to be. I might be writing Wiggins off too early, but the one time that they were on the same team together, Exum stole the show. Exum has that fire that when I see it in the guy, I want him on my team. He's just a kid now, but when he grows into his man suit, he's gonna be something special. I just feel it.


5 - Next year's draft class is full of big men.

Last year, I bashed on Nerlens Noel pretty hard. Probabaly more than he deserved. I do think his upside is that of a Tyson Chandler-ish type of player in the league and that's not bad at all. But I was also looking ahead at this year's class and saw several big men candidates.... including Joel Embiid. Nobody really thought he was going to end up surpassing Wiggins and Parker or Randle... in fact that kind of talk was ridiculous. There were others Calley-Stein, Austin from Baylor, Montrezl Harrell, even Aaron Gordon at PF was a thought. Basically, I felt there were options in the future if we passed on Noel. Not knowing how they would turn out, still I knew we'd have a chance to put someone next to Vucevic without being forced to draft Noel.

This year, I feel almost the same way about Embiid. I definitely think Embiid is better than Noel, but I feel the same in the idea that I would be ok without him. Yes, it's true that I made a thread not long ago about KOQ possibly being our PF of the future. It was a nice discussion, but next year's draft sports the names of Jahlil Okafor, Cliff Alexander, Myles Turner, Marcus Lee, Brice Johnson, Karl Towns and I'm sure others will emerge as they usually do. Those are 6 big men with major potential (some of them have a lot of growing to do) and they won't all go in the Top 6. There are players at other positions that will have a say about that! So what I'm saying is that we won't necessarily have to be in tank mode to get one of them. So let's get Exum and get this show on the road!

If I'm really enticed... I might even trade AA and our WoNK pick for an unprotected 2015 1st rounder to a team like the Bucks! This year's draft is already not looking to be as strong as it once was considered. This year we get Exum, next year we get... say... Myles Turner...or Karl Towns. WOW. Talk about PERFECTION.

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NoX6y2PJeq4[/youtube]

How can someone write so much on a player he has so little information on.

It s like people proposing to someone they 've met online.

Really might break your heart

[Skin]

so what's all this I keep reading about exum and his intent on getting to the lakers? is that real or no?

I think people are really blowing this out of proportion. He was asked in a interview what NBA teams he would want to play for and he said the Lakers and the second team he said was the Magic. The reasoning he said was that him and Oladipo have a great relationship ever since he visited IU for a possible college recruit. The laker fans and national media took this and spun it to be like a Kobe Bryant situation. I will not be concerned until we hear if he starts refusing workouts to anyone except LA.

It's something to keep an eye on. He seems to really want to go to LA. It wasn't just one interview either. He's mentioned the Lakers in multiple interviews and how he wants to get close to Kobe and pick his brain. You can only do that if you're his teammate. He even signed with Kobe's agent and attended a Lakers game the other day. There are a number of ways he can dissuade teams from picking him to make sure he drops to the Lakers. Then again, with how bad the Lakers are, they will probably finish worse than us and be able to pick him anyway... if they value him that much, of course.

Having a hero isn't a bad thing. Lebron's hero was MJ. The fact that Dante is so infatuated with Kobe is awesome. I hope he studies Kobe's game and tries to mimic him the best that he can. If Dante ends up coming anything close to Kobe... even MORE reason for me to want him. This draft is important for us to draft a Superstar and we shouldn't limit our vision to things that we have only seen up to this point. Many of the Oladipo critics felt this way about him. They only saw what he showed them and had a hard time believing he could be more. I think it's important to know the size of the fight in the dog. I think Exum has that dog. That fight is what's gonna take him to the next level. That's what fears me about Wiggins. Not enough fight.

Players can have favorite teams and such, but it's only a rare case where a top player will fully put up a fuss about it. cough *Steve Francis* cough. Exum to the Magic is already a non-issue since he's said that he would love to play for us.

[Skin]

1) AA is not the ideal fit for this team.

2) Exum at SG not PG.

3) The 2 PG rotation match up.

4 - Exum's own potential

5 - Next year's draft class is full of big men.

How can someone write so much on a player he has so little information on.

It s like people proposing to someone they 've met online.

Really might break your heart

Well the part about Exum wasn't really that long. The other points that I do know about are easy to support. But to your question, the way I look at it is very similar to the college Senior Bowl for NFL prospects. Small school guys get to compete on the same level with Big school competition and sometimes they shine and sometimes they don't. Either way, the week of practice and the game is an important measuring tool for NFL teams.

In the Nike Hoops Summit Exum got to compete with those other highly touted prospects and he not only shined through practices, but showed up very strong in the game. You can find a lot online, but I have one article up that I was recently reading. Here's a quote from it:

After generating buzz all week in practice, Exum went on to score 16 points in the main event during the World's win over U.S.A.

...and that's not just a case of "One game wonders"... He followed up his play at the FIBA World Championships.

...his most impressive feat came at the 2013 U19 FIBA World Championships, when he led Australia to a bronze after putting up 18.2 points and 3.8 assists a game.

Exum went for 33 against Spain and 28 against Lithuania in July, earning the full attention of NBA onlookers in the process.

Here's the article. http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1857 ... -prospects

There isn't a lot of video to find on him against competition as good as the college game, but there is enough to see his natural skills, hunger, basketball iq and a whole lot to read about if you take the time to do the research. I try not to believe everything I read, but I have found that there is enough out there to build a strong opinion on. Don't need to film to know that his measurables stack up and don't need film to know what the Magic's needs are.

[bigdogdylan5]

1) AA is not the ideal fit for this team.

2) Exum at SG not PG.

3) The 2 PG rotation match up.

4 - Exum's own potential

5 - Next year's draft class is full of big men.

How can someone write so much on a player he has so little information on.

It s like people proposing to someone they 've met online.

Really might break your heart

Well the part about Exum wasn't really that long. The other points that I do know about are easy to support. But to your question, the way I look at it is very similar to the college Senior Bowl for NFL prospects. Small school guys get to compete on the same level with Big school competition and sometimes they shine and sometimes they don't. Either way, the week of practice and the game is an important measuring tool for NFL teams.

In the Nike Hoops Summit Exum got to compete with those other highly touted prospects and he not only shined through practices, but showed up very strong in the game. You can find a lot online, but I have one article up that I was recently reading. Here's a quote from it:

After generating buzz all week in practice, Exum went on to score 16 points in the main event during the World's win over U.S.A.

...and that's not just a case of "One game wonders"... He followed up his play at the FIBA World Championships.

...his most impressive feat came at the 2013 U19 FIBA World Championships, when he led Australia to a bronze after putting up 18.2 points and 3.8 assists a game.

Exum went for 33 against Spain and 28 against Lithuania in July, earning the full attention of NBA onlookers in the process.

Here's the article. http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1857 ... -prospects

There isn't a lot of video to find on him against competition as good as the college game, but there is enough to see his natural skills, hunger, basketball iq and a whole lot to read about if you take the time to do the research. I try not to believe everything I read, but I have found that there is enough out there to build a strong opinion on. Don't need to film to know that his measurables stack up and don't need film to know what the Magic's needs are.

People are loving to ignore these events calling them All star games. The senior bowl comparison is perfect because its not just about the game but the week of practice before that is more important. This guy is a stud and has been successful against good talent but people want to stick to narrative he played against bad competition

[MellowRose]

Excellent post

1st post? I am not worthy!

And you didn''t give the dude an And 1?

[yoyojw17]

Long time supporter of AA. Big fan... If we get the right kind of value in return then I'll survive. #lookingtothefuture

To me, if we draft Exum (or Smart for that matter), I would like to trade a package of players for an all-star caliber PF to go with Vuc.

Oladipo
Exum
Harris/Harkless/WoNK pick (whichever we have left after the trade)
All-star PF
Vuc

Afflalo/Harris/WoNK for Al Horford

Damn..... that's a lot....but very tempting! I'm still a taj gibson fan....would be a lil cheaper...Noah would be a great player i would love to peel away from the bulls....but wishful thinking.

[axl_c_cool]

Excellent post, valid points and argument for drafting Exum. I can't disagree with, and if Hennigan and the scouts agree it seems like a good plan. I'm not bothered about him being a Kobe fan, he's a boy, what do you expect? Players will be fans of players and teams, it's more important to develop a culture of teamwork and ownership of your team so players want to stay and be a part of what you are doing.


I don't know enough about Exum to say if he's the right choice and I think we need to see what range we end up and how March goes before we will have any idea who we will pick, great post though op

Also the deal for Horford is to much in my opinion

[Catledge]

The nice performances in international competition are nice, but that's still only a tiny amount of evidence to go on. Assuming that he skips the combine, it's going to come down to Exum's individual workouts.

[RookieStar]

I just wanna chime in.

In a draft like this wherein there is no clear-cut number one pick or any rankings, it's normal for each of us to have a particular favorite. We can't fault anybody for their picks because frankly, we don't know how any of them will come out.

I mean we saw Darko getting picked as the #2 and some were justifying it because he played in a "tough" eurolegaue or something but look at what he is now. Same as Exum, he might be playing at an "inferioir" Aussie league but we don't know how that will translate to the nba.

However, we need to look at something first. All this hoo-ha with his desire to play for the lakers. Remember Kobe? Pouting and threatening until he got traded from CHA to LA? Do we wanna take a chance at that? What about all these rumors of KLOVE and his LA-bound FA? We got burned by players who want the bright lights and while it's ok to take the chance in a 20s-30s draft pick that we "might" convince to stay long-term, do we really wanna take the chance on a very high draft pick? Those kinds of picks are rare and we just wanna risk it for a player that "might" pout or leave us after his rookie contract?

That's why I'm voting NO for Exum. We are the magic, we got burned already and signs are pointing that this kid might do the same to us.

[MagicStarwipe]

I don't buy this L.A. rubbish. Exum is from Australia. He's just happy that he'll be in the NBA. It's becoming more common, but that's a pretty rare thing for an Australian. Especially to get the type of hype and attention that he's got. I guess Bogut is the only other one that can compare. I really don't think he'll be like one of these entitled American star athletes that feel they're too good to go to certain teams (Kobe, Shaq, Steve Francis).

[OrlandO]

I just wanna chime in.

In a draft like this wherein there is no clear-cut number one pick or any rankings, it's normal for each of us to have a particular favorite. We can't fault anybody for their picks because frankly, we don't know how any of them will come out.

I mean we saw Darko getting picked as the #2 and some were justifying it because he played in a "tough" eurolegaue or something but look at what he is now. Same as Exum, he might be playing at an "inferioir" Aussie league but we don't know how that will translate to the nba.

However, we need to look at something first. All this hoo-ha with his desire to play for the lakers. Remember Kobe? Pouting and threatening until he got traded from CHA to LA? Do we wanna take a chance at that? What about all these rumors of KLOVE and his LA-bound FA? We got burned by players who want the bright lights and while it's ok to take the chance in a 20s-30s draft pick that we "might" convince to stay long-term, do we really wanna take the chance on a very high draft pick? Those kinds of picks are rare and we just wanna risk it for a player that "might" pout or leave us after his rookie contract?

That's why I'm voting NO for Exum. We are the magic, we got burned already and signs are pointing that this kid might do the same to us.

I think if he really wants to go to LA that badly he'll use tactics to dissuade teams from picking him before the draft, like denying workouts or blatantly saying he's not interested. He's temporarily living in LA now and hired Kobe's agent, so it would be pretty easy to work out a mutual understanding with the Lakers prior to the draft. The Lakers are 4th worst right now and could possibly end up 3rd worst by the end of the season, so he would not have to do much to position himself for the Lakers if that's what they all want.

It's worth noting that he said he wants to play in Orlando with Oladipo as well... so not like we're on the do not want list. If Hennigan picks Exum after workouts and interviews, then I probably wouldn't be too concerned. I am only skeptical now because we don't know what he's going to do leading up to the draft.

Also, I think Exum's preference to be picked by the Lakers has more to Kobe than the city... he's stressed multiple times how he would love to play with and learn from Kobe. Well, Kobe will be long gone by the time Exum becomes a free agent.

[Skin]

I just wanna chime in.

In a draft like this wherein there is no clear-cut number one pick or any rankings, it's normal for each of us to have a particular favorite. We can't fault anybody for their picks because frankly, we don't know how any of them will come out.

I mean we saw Darko getting picked as the #2 and some were justifying it because he played in a "tough" eurolegaue or something but look at what he is now. Same as Exum, he might be playing at an "inferioir" Aussie league but we don't know how that will translate to the nba.

However, we need to look at something first. All this hoo-ha with his desire to play for the lakers. Remember Kobe? Pouting and threatening until he got traded from CHA to LA? Do we wanna take a chance at that? What about all these rumors of KLOVE and his LA-bound FA? We got burned by players who want the bright lights and while it's ok to take the chance in a 20s-30s draft pick that we "might" convince to stay long-term, do we really wanna take the chance on a very high draft pick? Those kinds of picks are rare and we just wanna risk it for a player that "might" pout or leave us after his rookie contract?

That's why I'm voting NO for Exum. We are the magic, we got burned already and signs are pointing that this kid might do the same to us.

I can understand the worry of being burnt, but Exum has love for the Magic.

As for the Magic, he envisions helping his close friend Victor Oladipo—they met at Indiana during Exum's recruiting visit when he was contemplating college—with point guard duties.

"They’re having some point guard problems and they’re trying to get Victor Oladipo into the point guard," he said. "Also, having a good relationship with Victor, I think that would be a good fit. He could kind of mentor me a bit coming into the point guard."

[Bensational]

nice write up Skin.

I've been saying Exum could/should play the 2 for a while, especially on our team. Not sure why people get fixated on him being a PG, when he's 6'6 and still filling into his body.

anyone read that wiretap about Morey and Karl at the Sloan Analytics conference? they were saying that it's beneficial to play fast paced, and to have two guards who can initiate the offense at any given moment. i think that plays entirely into what Henny and JV have been saying about Dipo from day dot - he's a guard. meaning, he can do both. and ideally, we'll get another guard/wing next to him who can do the same - play make.

that said, Exum is still a very unknown commodity. you can only really evaluate him in isolation if you want to fairly compare him to other NCAA prospects - comparing their physical and athletic attributes, as well as individual skills - shooting mechanics/ability, ball handling, defense. i, personally, don't have enough skill on that front to form any concrete opinion, and there are only a handful of posters on this board who's opinions i'd actually trust about that matter, too.

as for the LA stuff... i don't think it will be a problem, but it wouldn't surprise me if his agent is whispering sweet nothings in his ear, and trying to position them behind the scenes to put him in LA. i don't think it would be a matter of Exum wanting that, but moreso the people managing him. LA is looking to hand the Kobe legacy on to someone, and if Kobe's agent and Kobe have given him the nod of approval, then that probably makes me want him more. remember, he said he's good friends with Dipo, and i think that could play well into his favour.

all in all, i'll be happy with any of Embiid/Parker/Wiggins/Exum and wouldn't be unhappy with Randle/Smart/Vonleh at this point.

[Skin]

nice write up Skin.

I've been saying Exum could/should play the 2 for a while, especially on our team. Not sure why people get fixated on him being a PG, when he's 6'6 and still filling into his body.

anyone read that wiretap about Morey and Karl at the Sloan Analytics conference? they were saying that it's beneficial to play fast paced, and to have two guards who can initiate the offense at any given moment. i think that plays entirely into what Henny and JV have been saying about Dipo from day dot - he's a guard. meaning, he can do both. and ideally, we'll get another guard/wing next to him who can do the same - play make.

that said, Exum is still a very unknown commodity. you can only really evaluate him in isolation if you want to fairly compare him to other NCAA prospects - comparing their physical and athletic attributes, as well as individual skills - shooting mechanics/ability, ball handling, defense. i, personally, don't have enough skill on that front to form any concrete opinion, and there are only a handful of posters on this board who's opinions i'd actually trust about that matter, too.

as for the LA stuff... i don't think it will be a problem, but it wouldn't surprise me if his agent is whispering sweet nothings in his ear, and trying to position them behind the scenes to put him in LA. i don't think it would be a matter of Exum wanting that, but moreso the people managing him. LA is looking to hand the Kobe legacy on to someone, and if Kobe's agent and Kobe have given him the nod of approval, then that probably makes me want him more. remember, he said he's good friends with Dipo, and i think that could play well into his favour.

all in all, i'll be happy with any of Embiid/Parker/Wiggins/Exum and wouldn't be unhappy with Randle/Smart/Vonleh at this point.

Thanks Ben. I really was one of those hung up on him at PG and I had issues with it too because I tend to favor pass first type of PGs, but with Dipo's continued progress at PG and the thought of that not going to waste, the light came on that Exum playing next to him at the 2 spot was the perfect compliment... it all made perfect sense. Both can play PG and both can play SG. The beauty of that backcourt would be so wondrous!

It's no secret that the Magic are best when they play fast and even JV has spoken many times about his desire to play faster. Part of getting there is getting a guy like Exum who has terrific ball handling ability and can blaze up and down the court. When I heard JV say that, it made me think that Exum is the perfect fit for the Magic and the way Coach Vaughn wants to play basketball.

I didn't catch that wiretap from the Sloan Conference but I'm so excited that the Magic had the largest contingency there. If we start adding up the pieces of the puzzle... is there a better prospect for us to target right now than Exum? Colangelo is well respected around the league and he's always been a huge fan of international players. Being a keynote speaker at the conference, I'm sure some of that was reinforced. Hennigan's no stranger to that either. His experience at San Antonio where they were the model of international flavor, must have had an impact. I don't see any way that Exum's international experience would be counting against him in the Magic's eyes. If anything I would imagine they would be even more tempted.

[OrlChamps2030]

nice write up Skin.

I've been saying Exum could/should play the 2 for a while, especially on our team. Not sure why people get fixated on him being a PG, when he's 6'6 and still filling into his body.

This is a really interesting point that should be discussed more around here. Seems as though Exum is almost unanimously seen as a PG on this board yet on some other boards he is overwhelmingly seen as a SG. Position doesn't matter too much because both guys are "guards".. but Exum could be the scorer / playmaker we need at SG next to Oladipo.