Additional court time thanks to a timely George Hill injury has Dante Exum confident he can get his NBA season back on track.
Australian Exum, 21, admits his mental state took a nose dive as his minutes recently plummeted under Jazz coach Quin Snyder.
But with starting point guard Hill sidelined indefinitely due to a toe injury, Exum is keen to take advantage, hoping his 10-point effort in 22 minutes against Denver can be a springboard for the rest of the season.
"Obviously when there's something like that when your minutes go down, your confidence can go down," Exum said after the Nuggets game.
"I think it did for a second.
News that makes sense
Your trusted source for staying up-to-date with the world around you. Get free daily news updates and analysis, straight to your inbox.
"I brought it back up. I was in the gym the next day working on it.
"That's where I built the confidence back up and I'm ready to go."
The showing against the Nuggets came on the back of a disappointing outing in a one-point loss to Miami, where Exum had five points on one-from-six shooting as he filled in for the injured Hill.
He had played only 21 minutes in the four matches prior to that, including being left on the bench for the victory over Minnesota.
It was his first 'did not play - coaches decision' since returning this season from a knee reconstruction.
Exum, the 2014 No.5 draft pick, has another chance to impress with Hill reportedly ruled out of Monday's (Tuesday AEDT) clash against the Lakers in Los Angeles.
Snyder has backed Exum's character and work ethic, saying getting "him to walk through the fire a little bit" would be positive to building up his resilience.
"If you don't have adversity, it's hard to have the impetus to improve," Snyder said.
