By Roy Ward
For elite local basketballers, nothing is better than playing for Australia.
For Victorian Dante Exum, 18, this is also the case, although if the predictions are right, he could be heading to even bigger places next year.
Dante Exum remains undecided about whether to enter the draft in 2014 or play US college basketball and allow himself more time to mature.Credit: Getty Images
The 198-centimetre combo guard was listed as the predicted No. 3 pick by ESPN NBA draft guru Chad Ford on Thursday in Ford's first top-100 players list for the 2014 draft. Ford's draft board is one of the most respected in NBA circles and is drawn from the opinions of scouts and other NBA insiders.
Exum remains undecided about whether to enter the draft in 2014 or play US college basketball and allow himself more time to mature.
''It's definitely a scary thing to look at, to see my name up there with those guys,'' Exum said. ''It's good to be noticed that high in a mock draft for next year.
''I'll keep working on my game, hopefully I remain at that standard.''
But Exum said where he placed in mock drafts wouldn't shape his decision. Instead, he will ask himself whether he is ready, physically and mentally, for the NBA.
''It's obviously good to know it's there,'' he said. ''I'm looking at the angle of, if I'm ready for the NBA just now, that is what the decision will come down to. I'm confident the NBA will always be there [if he went to college].''
Exum is in camp with the Boomers in Canberra after being selected for the senior squad by new coach Andrej Lemanis.
The Boomers will face New Zealand in game two of their two-game Oceania series in Canberra on Sunday, with ABC 1 showing the game live at 4.30pm.
Exum isn't playing many minutes for the Boomers. Instead, he has had the better part of two weeks to tackle and play alongside NBA-calibre guards Patty Mills, Joe Ingles and Matt Dellavedova.
''It's definitely a great learning experience playing with and against them,'' Exum said, referring to Mills and Dellavedova. ''Stepping up against men day-in and day-out is a challenge. I mean, all these guys are pros.
''One day that is where I want to get to. This has been great for learning and seeing them every day and how they are treating their bodies. It's a confidence boost to know I can hold my own against them.''
Exum has elite level speed and is especially good at beating defenders when driving to the basket but scouts have also said he must improve his shooting and his strength, two things which take time and lots of work.
One of Exum’s concerns about playing professionally next year is the lift in physicality, especially as he is still adding bulk to his thin frame. Despite being especially fast himself, at NBA level the best players have the speed to catch him and the muscle to beat him.
“It seems like an obvious one but I’ve found with the Boomers that the physicality is at a whole other level,” Exum said. “The change in how physical it between junior international matches and senior international matches has opened my eyes.”
Lemanis played both Exum and fellow teenager Ben Simmons in short bursts against New Zealand in game one in Auckland on Wednesday night with Exum coming on late in the second quarter and Simmons coming on in the third quarter.
Exum and Simmons are good mates and have known each other for most of their lives since their dad’s, Cecil Exum and Dave Simmons, were both American imports that came to play in the NBL and decided to stay in Australia. Exum said playing in the pressured environment of international play was a great experience.
“It was a great atmosphere, the New Zealand crowd was really into it,” Exum said. “When I came off the bench into game it was nerve wracking but the guys really helped me settle down, once I was out there I enjoyed it.
“Considering I’m only 18, it was a big surprise to get called up to the Boomers but it’s been great to learn about the team culture.
“I’m going to take every opportunity I can to get better.”
After spending the first half of this year training overseas, then leading the Australian under-19s to fourth place at the world championships and now playing for the Boomers, Exum will spend the rest of this year hitting the books as he finishes year 12 in Canberra while continuing training at the AIS.
“I have nothing on for the rest of the year,” Exum said, then laughed. “Except to finish year 12, with all that I’ve been doing this year it hasn’t felt like I’ve been at school at all.
“I go to Lake Ginninderra College in Canberra because I’m at the AIS so they have been really flexible and allowed me to travel, the teachers there have been really good to me.”
Exum and his family will also put off all decision making on his playing future until his classes and exams are finished.
“We haven’t set any timelines, I’ll finish school and then we will see where I’m at,” Exum said.
The Opals also play game two of their qualifying series against New Zealand in Canberra on Sunday with the match also live on ABC 1 at 2pm.