The Dallas Mavericks earned a 125-112 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers on the road Friday. Luka Doncic led the charge once again with 32 points, 10 assists, and six rebounds. Dante Exum, however, played a pivotal role in Dallas' victory as well.
Exum finished the game with 23 points, six rebounds, and seven assists. He addressed his strong performance after the game, via the Dallas Mavericks on X (formerly Twitter).
“We know they're (Blazers) a young team, they're going to play hard,” Exum said. “So it was just about coming out here and grinding. And we did.”
Kyrie Irving suffered an injury scare during the game. An initial report suggested that Irving left the arena in a wheelchair, but Mavs head coach Jason Kidd later refuted that report. Regardless, there is certainly concern about Irving's injury.
Exum commented on how the Mavs came together and still found a way to win despite losing a superstar in Irving.
“When Kai went down, it was just about team, everyone getting involved,” Exum continued. “That's what we did. I'm glad that we were able to get the win.”
Exum features the potential to become a big part of this Mavs team. He has proven that he can contribute at a high level and help Dallas win games.
Dante Exum's impact on Mavs
Exum, 28, has played in 18 games so far for the Mavs. He is averaging 5.8 points per contest in 12.7 minutes per game. Again, as mentioned earlier, it would not be surprising to see Exum begin to receive more minutes on a consistent basis.
Exum explained his mindset in his current role for the Mavs, and how it impacted his game on Friday.
“I came in with the same mindset. I'm going to pick up full-court and help as much as I can offensively, I can get downhill. The shots haven't been falling so far but I've been staying confident. And you know, look, tonight I went 2-2 from three.”
It will be interesting to see how the Mavs utilize Dante Exum moving forward. He could emerge as an X-Factor of sorts for the Mavericks.
Dallas will look to win their third consecutive game on Monday in a road clash with the Memphis Grizzlies.
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