Rockets working toward re-signing Dante Exum

The Rockets are apparently working toward re-signing free agent reserve guard Dante Exum, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).

Injuries have hampered Exum’s time in the league thus far. He was drafted by the Jazz with the fifth overall pick in 2014. Utah eventually sent him to the Cavaliers in December 2019.

Cleveland, in turn, shipped Exum to the Rockets as part of the four-team James Harden trade, but injuries kept him on the bench for the entirety of his 2020-21 Houston tenure. He appeared in just six games for Cleveland, and thus overall, during the 72-game 2020-21 NBA season.

All told, Exum has appeared in 245 of a possible 554 games during his eight-season NBA run thus far. The 6-5 Exum holds career averages of 5.7 PPG, 1.8 RPG, and 2.1 APG across 18.6 MPG.

On a rebuilding Rockets team, the 26-year-old could have plenty of opportunity to rebuild his value. Charania observes that Exum averaged 9 PPG and 2.8 APG for Team Australia’s bronze medal-winning club this summer during the Olympics in Tokyo.