Dante Exum's quiet transformation is making him irreplaceable for the Mavericks

The Dallas Mavericks head into the All-Star break with some momentum. The team has won four of their last five games, most recently beating the Golden State Warriors and Miami Heat on a series of back-to-back nights. Their latest win puts them one game behind the Minnesota Timberwolves and two games back from the LA Clippers in the West.

Klay Thompson has been a major reason for the team's recent success. He has been playing solid basketball this month. Thompson has averaged 14.7 points per game over the six games while shooting 40.7 percent overall. Against his former team on Wednesday, Thompson scored 17 points and shot 35.7 from the 3-point line. His former team made a mistake in letting him go, and he has been helping the team stay afloat recently.

Newcomer Max Christie has also made his presence known. Christie has been a major spark plug for Dallas. He has shown he can do a little bit of everything from guarding multiple positions to shooting well from long range. In the team's most recent victory, Christie scored 19 points and shot 42.1 percent overall. Defensively, he finished with three steals and a block.

Dante Exum's newest offensive weapon is starting to turn heads

Like Christie, Dante Exum has also been a huge X-factor. Exum had his best game on Thursday when he scored a season-high 27 points on 84.6 percent shooting from the field. He also converted 100 percent of his 3-pointers and finished the game with two steals. His efforts on both ends of the court played a pivotal role in showing just how much the team missed him at the beginning of the season when he was out with a wrist injury.

Exum made his return this season on January 31. He scored a mere three points in his first game back, as Exum played just 14 minutes. Fast forward to February and he has taken a major leap. He has scored 14 or more points in four of his past six games. Exum has also shot above 50 percent from long range in three of his past four matches.

The biggest difference has been his ability to attack the basket more. Exum has had no fear putting his head down and scoring inside. He does a great job using his fast pace speed to attack the basket, while laying the ball up at the perfect moment. This is a major improvement from last season when he struggled with some one-dimensionality in his offensive game.

In the NBA Playoffs last season, Exum failed to demonstrate the same skills. He became very one-dimensional and struggled to do anything other than shoot the ball. Exum had a poor performance against the Clippers in round one of the playoffs. He averaged 1.5 points per game in the series and shot 22.2 percent overall.

Since returning from his wrist injury though, Exum has been a different breed. He is a solid addition to a team battling numerous injuries. Defensively, he is a savvy defender who isn't afraid to use his hands to make things difficult for the opposition. Exum can guard multiple positions and does a great job using his length to force scorers into difficult spots.

Dante Exum's play could be key for the team's second-half turnaround. The Mavs will need him to continue playing at a high level, as the team will be without key players for an extended period. Not to mention, Exum will be a free agent at the end of this season. These next couple of months could be make or break for Exum.