Australian guard Dante Exum has been ruled out for the entire 2025-26 NBA season after “complications” from a procedure on his right knee during the offseason.
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Dallas Mavericks PR announced the news this morning on X.
“Mavericks guard Dante Exum has continued to deal with complications from a right knee procedure in the offseason, and it has been determined that a follow-up surgery will be necessary. Exum will miss the remainder of the season and a further timeline will be provided when known,” they posted.
It’s a cruel blow for the Boomers star, who dealt with numerous serious injuries during his start to his NBA career, which then forced him out of the league and to ply his trade in Europe.
The No.5 pick in the 2014 NBA Draft then got his career back on track with FC Barcelona and Patizan Belgrade as well as helping the Boomers to a historic Olympic bronze medal in Tokyo in 2021 before earning a spot with the Mavericks.
It was there, Exum carved out a significant role under coach Jason Kidd, and was part of a Dallas team which made it all the way to the 2024 NBA Finals. The former Australian Institute of Sport scholarship holder then had an injury-riddled 2024-25 season before dealing with this right knee issue during the preseason.
Exum’s injury is also a blow to Dallas’ guard stocks with All-Star point guard Kyrie Irving working his way back from an ACL injury.
The Mavericks re-signed Exum to a one-year, $3.3 million deal in the offseason but he was never cleared to practice.
It is the latest setback in a nightmare season for Dallas, who fired general manager Nico Harrison earlier this month, and don’t have the necessary cap space to sign a replacement for Exum to provide much-needed backcourt depth.
This article first appeared on basketball.com.au and was reproduced with permission.