It’s been less than six months since the Miami Heat selected Jaime Jaquez Jr. in the first round of 2023 NBA Draft, and things are going even better than anticipated for the Mexican-American rookie from UCLA.
Jaquez was taken with the 18th overall pick and predicted to be a solid player in the league, but after 30+ games into the 2023-24 season, he’s exceeded expectations. Currently, Jaquez is averaging 13.8 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 2.7 assists per game, and is considered by NBA analysts as the third best rookie playing in the NBA.
According to GQ Sports, Jaquez is only the sixth player with Mexican citizenship to make it to the NBA. He is a Mexican-American dual citizen and played for the Mexican national team during the 2019 Pan-American Games in Peru.
Jaquez comes in second only to Hall of Famer Dwyane Wade in points, rebounds, and assists as a rookie in Heat history. He has already earned the nickname “Juan Wick,” a reference to the action movie character John Wick played by Keanu Reeves.
As one of the very few Latinos currently playing in the NBA, Jaquez is finding fans across the world. He said it “feels good” to know that others are looking up to him in that way.
“I understand that when it comes to the bigger picture, it’s what I’m representing,” he said. “I’m proud and happy to represent something bigger than myself, but I’m just a person doing what I love, and I’m glad other people see that as inspiring.”
Jaquez also recently went up against the legendary Lebron James and hit a jumper over him during a game between the Miami Heat and the LA Lakers.
Here’s another view of it.
Jaquez was so excited about the moment that he told Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald, “I’m going to have that video and I’m going to show that to my kids, when I have kids.”