The Rising Ceiling of Jaime Jaquez Jr. | J. Kyle Mann

The Rising Ceiling of Jaime Jaquez Jr. | J. Kyle Mann

In the basketball life of haime hakz Jr the boy they once called haito the man they now call Juan Wick Legacy and lineage are two major themes the 6w 7 chill bro Bruiser was a key contributor for four successful Seasons that added to the rich Tradition at uccla back when

Mick Cronin could still smile can’t call your mommy she can’t help you and he’s a descendant in a bloodline of hoopers hae’s grandfather was a multisport athlete at Northern Arizona and his parents his father haime senior was a steady guard and his mother Angela was a front Court star who printed bucket and

Actually won Player of the Year in her conference met at Concordia University in Irvine California ha is also the latest overlooked and undervalued shimmering gym to be Unearthed by the Miami Heat who picked him at the 17th spot in the 2023 NBA draft the heat in the post heatles era haven’t bomed out

And thus haven’t depended heavily on the draft in the past 10 drafts they’ve picked seven players and their slugging percentage has been pretty good heat culture as a phrase has undoubtedly hit meme status to the point where it can be hard to know what the hell it even means

At times but as an idea it’s clear that the team continues to lean in and stay committed to the bit their bold-faced insistence to Never say die especially when you measure their repeated recent successes makes it hard to blame him it’s a Brazen rigid belief and rigid accountability for the smallest

Competitive details and that trickles down from the top aside from his ability as a player hae’s alignment with that philosophy set him up to hit the ground running and contribute to a veteran team immediately through 39 games hawz is averaging 14 points 2.7 assists and 3.9 rebounds per outing while shooting 35.3%

From three and 60% true shooting overall I also find it fascinating that among all players not just rookies haime is fourth in the entire NBA in fourth quarter minutes per game haime played four years of highlevel college basketball and Big Time tournament games and if he didn’t play well they didn’t

Win there’s a responsibility that he learned early on from that he also learned how to play a role his first two years when he was like the afterthought his freshman year third fourth option is his second here on both offense and defense hz’s game is a fascinating blend

Of the subtle and not so subtle of Highly developed offb feel and of imposing physicality with sharp technique on it entering the league at almost 22 years old he’s an older rookie but Hawkins has always had this Paul Pierce esque old man game this baked in maturity that belies his years when

Talking about the inspiration ations That Grew and crystallized within his offensive game hakz has given us a few tea leaves he stated in the past that he worked out daily with his dad Hime senior a much smaller human being that actually played point guard at the college level and one could also assume

That this mimicked quick read feel shows up in what he does with and without the ball it’s visible in the simple passes that he makes sharp entries alert Inside Out passes that flip the floor drop offs to Cutters but haime the younger has melded with Miami stars because of what

He’s able to do without the ball he’s free frequently the trigger man for Miami’s offense while only occasionally acting as its focal point and small details go a long way on this front he might time a cut and off ball screen perfectly to take the strong side helper

Out of a play or sneak behind his man at the perfect time the moment their eyes Linger on a teammate turning the corner into ball screen but as a spacer at this point as a shooter hakz is like a pilot with a license to operate under clear

Conditions the cloudier it is the less likely he is to let it fly if he’s catching and shooting with some space he’s exceeded expectations to this point he’s h on 44.9% of his 69 uncontested threes but only 21.4% of 33 contested attempts hardly any of his jump shot offense comes after

More than a single dribble but in just a few months I think his posture and balance when shooting the ball have come a long way Miami’s Player Development in particular their shooting program under the guru Rob foder the man who studied cats I studied cats these improvements were pretty predictable when he’s

Creating for himself haim’s back to the basket game is his preference in that mode his footwork is exacting his use of weight is very aggressive and his angling is clever in fact the more you watch the tape of his mid post scoring bag the clearer a certain pattern

Becomes left shoulder spin the goes to the right hand and scores okay cool Not Unusual right slot catch and face up shot faking a drive to the basket for a reverse very nice but still we’ve seen it similar play here left slot catch similar up fake that Norm Pal doesn’t

Buy on Lefty drive with a right shoulder bump into a fade all right this is ringing a bell self-created right block post touch bump bump right shoulder Spin and wait a minute right side Drive rolls into a post up left Head and Shoulder fake turns right shoulder and then shot

Fake steps through the Kobe post bag which is actually MJ’s but we’ll keep it moving has become a fairly common part of the basketball dictionary of moves but this is a pretty blatant Recreation and for a SoCal kid who grew up in the 2010s this this is not difficult to

Imagine I found myself belly laughing at the sheer swaggin in the way that he attacks some of these matchups against established NBA players he’s like Miss trunch bull stalking the playground for someone to pick on Fresh Meat imagine being James Harden and getting cooked by the teacher and

Then again a decade later by the acolyte postgame has fallen in and out of fashion over the years but it’s a fun wrinkle for a spot up player in today’s game and mark my words this is the kind of thing in does Miami will be able to

Exploit in a playoff scenario as soon as this year as opponents try to put faster or smaller lineups on the floor hakz will be able to Target vulnerable post Defenders and imagine if they play Cleveland as they are projected to as of this day with their pair of small guards

In the first round that could be interesting defensively hakz is not the type to fly in off the top rope and erase a mistake by a teammate or dominate in general with his twitchiness although he is capable of being disruptive he’s sturdy and attentive when guarding on and off the ball

Choosing his battles and wagers as well so that he doesn’t get himself caught in a bad position he’s great at getting his hands in the cookie jar without getting caught I do Grant you if a bigger ISO score takes him into the mid-range he’s not typically going to explode off the

Floor or wow anyone with his ability to close gaps but at the end of the day Miami is a team that likes to Tinker and toggle between different types of zones heavy with Concepts like peel switching and those schemes call for Twitchy Discerning eyes and him answers that

Call even as one of his biggest proponents I admit that I did not expect his transition to the NBA to be this SE less lately I’ve been asking different questions the main one being what can we safely rule out for this guy a low-waist player who’s becoming a Dependable floor

Spacer someone who adds secondary and postup scoring with playmaking mixed in someone who strengthens a defensive scheme is it totally out of the question that he could become a top 50ish player he’s a good athlete but hakz was never going to Dazzle anyone with his athletic measurables to fully appreciate him a

Person would have to watch him function on a basketball team in a basketball game to observe how he elevates the players around him and adds value it’s a radical thought when this stuff continues to happen you have to sit back and wonder how year after year evaluators and teams alike get so

Blinded by physical tools and glimpses of could be might be on ball talent that they miss a sure thing that’s right in front of them I’ve thought about it and my thing is this Andy’s really hot and don’t get me wrong you’re cute too but Andy is like cut this is how players

Like Tyrese halberton and Jaylen Williams both fall to 12 or how alperin shingun Falls to 16 this is how Desmond Bane Falls to 30 it’s how Kevin mcculler might get overlooked this year as the heads up on that one it’s how haime hakz someone eager to learn and eager to kick

Some ass Falls to 17 so what they ever learn it’s hard to say you can bet that the Miami Heat hope that they never do let me know if you Agree

In a highly praised rookie class, Jaime Jaquez Jr.—the 18th overall pick, taken by the Miami Heat—has found a way to climb to the top of the conversation. His immediate impact has earned him Erik Spoelstra’s trust and a truckload of playing time. In this video, J. Kyle Mann takes a closer look at where his quiet confidence and well-rounded skill set come from and where he might go from here.
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