3 Studs, 2 duds from Mavericks' dominant closeout win over Clippers

2. Dud - Dante Exum

Before the 2024 NBA Playoffs began, Dallas Mavericks guard Dante Exum was someone who was expected to be a huge difference-maker. Exum had great stretches during the regular season that showed he can step up when the lights are brightest and when his teammates need him most, but he has been struggling since the playoffs began.

In Game 6, Exum finished with two points while shooting 1-3 from the field and 0-1 from downtown. Exum's one bucket was a smooth scoop layup, but he continues to miss wide-open threes. This is so out of the ordinary for him considering he shot nearly 50 percent from downtown during the regular season, and hiss struggless in this series were concerning.

There were even points in this series where Exum looked unplayable, and he has to find a way to make his impact felt whenever he's in the game. Exum brings effort and versatility on defense, but he has to start canning the open threes that he gets.

Exum shot a combined 0-6 from three in this series, and although that's a low volume, it's wild that he didn't drain a single shot from downtown considering how great of a shooter he was during the regular season.

Hopefully Exum can put his shooting struggles behind him in the series against the Oklahoma City Thunder, and some confidence would be huge for him.