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When Dante Exum turned his ankle on Derrick Favors’ foot it looked ugly, but then he was able to put a little weight on it and leave the court on his own strength. The hope would be maybe the injury looked worse than it really was. The good news is ... it was. The up and coming Utah point guard will only have to miss a couple weeks according to Tony Jones of the Athletic.
Utah Jazz point guard Dante Exum is expected to miss "a couple of weeks" due to the ankle he sprained on Saturday in Detroit, league sources tell The Athletic. Exum is officially out tonight as the Jazz take on the Milwaukee Bucks
— Tony Jones (@Tjonesonthenba) January 7, 2019
We don’t know whether that’s two weeks from the injury or two weeks from today, but it will depend on Utah’s medical staff which has done a brilliant job with Derrick Favors, Rudy Gobert, and the aforementioned Dante Exum last year. Looking at Utah’s upcoming schedule that would put Dante out of the mix for games against:
Mon. January 7th - @ Milwaukee Bucks
Wed. January 9th - vs Orlando Magic
Fri. January 11th - vs Los Angeles Lakers
Sat. January 12th - vs Chicago Bulls
Mon. January 14th - vs Detroit Pistons
Wed. January 16th - @ Los Angeles Clippers
Fri. January 18th - vs Cleveland Cavaliers
He would then be ready to return against the Portland Trail Blazers on the 21st or the Denver Nuggets on the 23rd. Sad to see him miss games, but if Exum only misses 7 games, he’s still on pace to play ~70 games. He’s right in the mix for the normal amount of games played by most NBA players. While Exum has battle major injuries in the past, this one is a normal one most NBA players suffer every once in a while. Nothing to worry about.
Even better, Dante Exum has the confidence of his coach.
Quin Snyder called Dante Exum last night to tell him this injury is different. Quin told him his play took a noticeable step in the last month and it will pick up right where it left off when he comes back.
— David Locke (@Lockedonsports) January 7, 2019
Good news for the Utah Jazz as they can expect their athletic phenom back by about the 21st provided there are no setbacks.