It was a very good Christmas for Miami Heat fans this year, not only did they pick up a win against the 76ers without Jimmy Butler, with head coach Erik Spoelstra moving to 9-0 on Christmas day in the process, but rookie forward Jaime Jaquez Jr once again proved he was an absolute steal with the 18th overall pick. By most people’s estimation, he’s been the third best rookie in the league through the first couple months, and he may have had his best game yet on Christmas. He finished with 31 points, 10 rebounds, 2 steals and had a true shooting of 84%. The Heat always seem to find talent in places where it shouldn’t be available, but Jaquez might be their best value find of this era, and they’ve had some very good ones. With him being just 22 years old, Tyler Herro being 23, and Bam Adebayo still only 26 the Heat will be set up well even after the Jimmy Butler era comes to an end. People don’t often think of the Heat as being set up with a super bright future, but the acquisition of Jaquez really puts them in that conversation. Especially considering their almost unbelievable talent identification, and the fact that they’ve always been an elite free agent destination as well. Some people have begun to refer to Jaquez as a young Jimmy Butler, due to their slow methodical play style, and ability to attack defenders in one-on-one scenarios. They also both have very impressive footwork in the post for players of their height. The rookie might already be the 4th or 5th best player on the team, and will only continue to get better, just like he did throughout his four years at UCLA. He shows clear flashes of star potential, and if he reaches it, he’s the future of this Miami Heat franchise. Now let’s take a deeper look.
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27 авг 2024
