The Miami Heat have brought to the attention of the basketball world their organisation’s uncanny ability to bring out the best in almost every player who makes the roster. It’s a familiar effect of Heat culture, and Jaime Jaquez Jr, the wing player the franchise selected 18th overall in the 2023 NBA Draft, looks like the latest rising star the team has in its ranks.
It was easy to take Jaquez’s NBA readiness for granted as a rookie. It’s not very often that a mid-first round pick immediately becomes an important contributor to a winning team. But that’s not the only reason Jaquez is at home in the Heat organisation.
In fact, to further emphasize his love for the Heat franchise, Jaime Jaquez Jr. stressed that he is glad the Los Angeles Lakers didn’t select him with the 17th pick, although not for the reason one might think.
“I wanted to get away … I didn’t want to be the guy who said, ‘Oh, I’ve stayed in Southern California my whole life’ … I wanted to go live in another, new place. That’s why I was so excited about going to Miami,” Jaquez told the Sun-Sentinel’s Ira Winderman.
As Jaquez is only 22 years old, it is only natural that he would look for new places where he could become a more complete and relevant version of himself. After all, staying in one place leads to stagnation. This is the opposite of what has happened to Jaquez in his short time with the Heat so far, as he is raising his game to a higher level day by day.
Nevertheless, Jaquez, a UCLA graduate, will always love the Southern California region. And who knows? For the last few years, the trend among NBA players has been to play for their hometown teams. Maybe one day Jaquez will decide to wear a Lakers jersey. For now, Jaquez is living his best life with the Heat franchise, preparing him for success in the best possible way.