The Dallas Mavericks are already facing adversity and the 2024-25 season hasn’t even started yet.

Dallas began the preseason on Monday with a narrow loss to the Memphis Grizzlies that included strong games from Jazian Gortman and Dereck Lively II. Still, the excitement of Gortman’s fight for the final roster spot and Lively II’s jump into year two was overshadowed by an untimely injury to Dante Exum.

Exum injured his right wrist during training camp on a play that Jason Kidd said was likely either a dunk or a hard fall, and that injury appears to be sidelining him for a significant amount of time.

Exum underwent successful surgery to repair his wrist injury on Tuesday and, according to ESPN’s NBA insider Shams Charania, Exum is expected to be out for three months. In three months, Exum would likely return in early January, and they will likely be without one of their key role players from last season until 2025.

Exum provided backup for Dallas last season and even served as a backup starter when injuries occurred. He averaged 7.8 points, 2.7 rebounds, 2.9 assists and 0.4 steals per game while shooting 49.1 percent from downtown, and he did all the little things when the Mavs wanted him most needed. His deadly 3-point shooting and ball-handling ability were highly valued by the Mavs all season, and he had several defining moments throughout the season.

Exum was also a good guard defender last season and fans had high hopes for the future of his 2024-25 season. He struggled significantly in the playoffs last season and was even overtaken by Jaden Hardy in the rotation, and fans will have to wait some time before he makes his season debut.

Injuries have not been kind to Exum since joining the Mavs, as he only played in 55 games last season and suffered a finger injury over the summer. Exum was originally fully healthy before suffering that wrist injury, and Spencer Dinwiddie and Hardy will need to put in even more effort.

Exum’s steady hand from last season cannot be undermined, and the Mavs will have to look elsewhere for how to handle the ball off the bench. Both Dinwiddie and Hardy should be more than capable of scoring some points and controlling the ball off the bench, but neither offers the same all-round impact as Exum.

Dallas will have to make a difficult decision when it comes to Exum next summer as his contract expires after this season. On the one hand, he is a great player off the bench and one of the best shooters on the team. On the other hand, his injury problem from his first NBA appearance seems to be coming back and there is some unreliability.

Exum’s absence for a few months presents a major hurdle for the Mavs to overcome in the first few months of the season, and Kidd’s “next man up” mentality will be tested starting on opening night.