Utah Jazz point guard Mike Conley has always been regarded as one of the nicest guys in the NBA. Besides always being respectful to the referees and his opponents, Conley has been an ideal teammate throughout his 12 seasons in the league. This was on display yet again on Monday evening, when Conley announced that he would be changing his jersey number so that new teammate Dante Exum could keep No. 11:
No one would have raised an eyebrow if Mike Conley had requested that Dante Exum change his number. Conley has much more experience under his belt than Exum and is easily the better player. Additionally, the veteran has worn 11 his entire career. It'd make sense if he wanted to retain it.
However, Mike Conley is much too nice a guy to force his way on anyone, especially a new teammate. Instead, he will graciously switch to accommodate Dante Exum.
Besides getting an excellent human being in Mike Conley, the Jazz also acquired a quality point guard and basketball player. Conley averaged a career-high 21.1 points per game last season in Memphis, the only team he had ever suited up for.
The crafty lefty has shown that he has plenty of gas left in the tank. The Jazz will count on him and fellow star Donovan Mitchell to separate the team from a stacked Western Conference and lead them on a deep playoff run.