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Los Angeles • A road-heavy schedule has kept the Jazz away from Salt Lake City for much of the first month of the season.

It's kept point guard Danté Exum away, too.

While rehabbing from a summer ACL tear, the 20-year-old had skipped the strain of air travel and stayed behind in Utah to work out whenever the Jazz have left town. But Exum made the flight to L.A. on Wednesday to join his teammates for his first road trip of the year.

"It's obviously tough" to stay behind, Exum said in the visiting locker room at Staples Center. "It's given me a chance to focus more on myself when they're away. … But it's good to get on the road."

Jazz guard Alec Burks can attest to that. Last year, a shoulder injury and subsequent surgery caused him to miss all but 27 games of the season. Traveling with his teammates helped keep him connected during tough times.

"It was good to still feel like a part of the team even though I couldn't play," he said.

Burks has shared some of those experiences with Exum, too.

"Keep fighting through it. There are good days and bad days. That's what I went through," Burks said. "There are some tough times, but you gotta see the light at the end of the tunnel."

Exum has continued to make progress in his rehabilitation, though there's still no official timeline for his return to the court and he is likely to miss the entire season. The 6-foot-6 guard has started running on an anti-gravity treadmill to strengthen his knee without putting much weight on it. And he's been seen working on free throws and doing other light work at the team's practice facility.

Jazz head coach Quin Snyder said he hoped this week's brief road trip would help Exum's progress.

"It's just good for him to be around it," the coach said. "He's working by himself a lot on his rehabilitation. That's not something he gets to do with the team. So any time he's able to reconnect with the guy and be around, it's an opportunity for him to go and experience the season, as well as kind of invigorate him, give him a little juice and encouragement."

Nothing but Neto

When Trey Burke's back started acting up and it was announced he would miss the second half of Wednesday's game against the Clippers, many presumed the Jazz would rely on their three-wing lineup.

And yes, Snyder closed the game without a point guard on the floor. But it was rookie point guard Raul Neto who helped build up the lead Utah's "Wing-T" look would defend.

Neto bested his season high in one quarter alone, scoring 10 points. He also dished out four assists and notched a steal in the period en route to a 102-91 victory.

"Raul had a really good night," Snyder said. "It's a heck of a thing to be a rookie in this league and have to play against Chris Paul."

Neto made the most of his extended minutes. He finished the game with 10 points and six assists.

"Sometimes just know that there's nowhere to go and 'Here it is. I'm going to play against Chris Paul and Trey Burke's out and I've got to play' it can relax you too," Snyder said. "You can be a little bit more reckless. There's not a downside. You don't have to be afraid in any way, and I thought he played fearless basketball."

Two nights earlier, Neto matched up against Oklahoma City All-Star Russell Westbrook and struggled to hold his own. Neto looked much more comfortable against the L.A. star.

"I think I just did my job," Neto said. "I tried hard against OKC. I tried hard tonight. I think everything went better tonight than the other night."

He's been the Jazz's starter since opening night, but Neto has been mostly a caretaker of the position.

On Wednesday, he was a catalyst.

In the middle

Clippers forward Blake Griffin had an All-Star performance against the Jazz. Griffin scored a game-high 40. But, for the most part, the Jazz will live with how Griffin did it.

"He beat us with mid-range jump shots," center Rudy Gobert said. "If he wants to hit mid-range all night, we'll take mid-range all night."

Griffin went 18-for-23 from the floor on Wednesday — 14 of those attempts came from mid-range.

At any rate, Griffin said he wouldn't be able to enjoy his performance.

"I would say you do not enjoy any performance when you lose," he said. "The whole point is to help your team win. And if you do not win, especially in the way we lost, it does not really do any good" to have individual success.

Injury report

Like Burke, Jazz guard Rodney Hood was dealing with some back issues in L.A. Hood managed to play 30 minutes, but could be seen wearing a wrap when he was on the bench.

"Hopefully he'll get treatment and be thankful and be ready Friday," Snyder said.

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