Jaime Jaquez Jr. Dominates with 31 Points in Heat’s Victory

Back in 2017, the Miami Heat selected Bam Adebayo with the 14th pick in the NBA Draft, and right now it felt like a steal. Little did we know at the time that Josh Jackson, Jonathan Isaac, Frank Ntilikina, Dennis Smith Jr., Zach Collins and Luke Kennard were ALL being considered, but there was no world where all of these guys had to go.

Before Adebayo. In a short amount of time, Adebayo has established himself as a pillar of the Miami Heat organization…a man who embodies what the Heat culture is all about. And now we’re going through the same crap again with Miami’s esteemed rookie Jaime Jaquez Jr., the 18th pick in the 2023 NBA draft.

As with Adebayo, we knew right away that Jaquez Jr. was a steal for the Heat. After all, he was the prospect who most embodied the culture of the Heat, and in his career at UCLA, Jaquez Jr. had no shortage of great games. Now he came to the NBA and played in the most stable league in the league.

Why should we be surprised that Jaquez Jr. have an immediate impact when Adebayo himself is not surprised when the rookie steps up? In a game where two of the game’s biggest stars — Jimmy Butler and Joel Embiid — were both ruled out with injury, it was star-making for mature rookie Jaime Jaquez Jr., who introduced himself to the crowd and finished the game with a career high. tall -high 31 points on 11-15 shooting from the field and a perfect 8 8 8 from the free throw line in Miami and#039 victory.

This season, Jaquez Jr. is the only Heat savior who did not miss a game in the Miamiand averaged 13.7 points and 3.9 rebounds in 28.9 minutes. 2.5 assists, 1.0 steals per game, 52-38-82 shooting differential. Seedling#039; it’s starting to look like jalen williams had a season in oklahoma city last year. Williams immediately showed himself as a mature rookie capable of playing multiple positions on a competitive team, but this year, Jaquez Jr. has already shown he has an even higher ceiling, with a “competitive team” playing for the defending Eastern Conference champions. .