The Miami Heat whiffed out on both of their point guard trade targets in Damian Lillard and Jrue Holiday. After coming off a surprising run to the NBA Finals, the Heat were looking to further strengthen their roster to make another deep playoff run. Now, in order to do so, they're going to be relying on the talent they already have on the roster. One player the Heat are hoping to get immediate contributions from is rookie forward Jaime Jaquez Jr. Jaquez was solid in his NBA season debut and he drew strong praise from Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra as per Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel.

“He has an ‘it' quality,” Erik Spoelstra said. “Whatever that ‘it' is, but where he'll make the appropriate play. It's not necessarily like a lot of young players who either they're going too fast or they're only looking to score. You can see his footwork. You can see his poise. And skill level all across the board, off the dribble, cuts and things of that nature.”

Jaime Jaquez was the No. 18 overall pick by the Heat in the 2023 NBA Draft. After a stellar college career at UCLA, Jaquez was still only projected to be selected in the second round of the NBA Draft by most mocks. He used strong pre-draft showings to boost his draft stock.

Jaquez was solid in his NBA debut in the Heat's opening night win against the Detroit Pistons. He played 13 minutes off the bench and finished with six points, two assists, two rebounds and two steals while shooting a perfect 3-3 from the field.