The Miami Heat's rookie sensation in Jaime Jaquez Jr. will have his footprint all over NBA All-Star weekend as he will be competing in the Rising Stars Game Friday night, then will be in the Slam Dunk contest on Saturday. He spoke to the media and gave his general feelings on being a part of this experience with the Heat, saying he has “a lot of emotions” according to Ira Winderman of The Sun Sentinel.

“I would say right now, I’m feeling nervous, feeling excited, a lot of emotions are coming to mind, just trying to embrace it all as it comes,” Jaquez said.

Jaquez talks about his busy rookie year with the Heat

Miami Heat rookie Jaime Jaquez Jr. next to the Slam Dunk Contest logo.

All of this happening for a first-year player must be overwhelming, but Jaquez has defied expectations so far this year, despite not being a top 10 pick in the last NBA draft. He was selected with the 18th overall pick by Miami and came out of the University of UCLA where he played for four full years. The 22-year old talked about how this year has been a whirlwind for him.

“A lot can happen in a year,” Jaquez said. “I think that’s what it’s taught me, this experience, is that one year you’re in college and then the next year you’re in the NBA. Things can change and it happened really fast and you take it as a blessing.”

As said before, Jaquez will be playing Friday night in the NBA Panini Rising Stars game as he will be on Pau Gasol's team. The next day, he will face off against Jaylen Brown, Jacob Toppin, and last year's winner in Mac McClung in the Slam Dunk contest. He said that since he was a kid, “I would always dream about being able to dunk.”

“I always loved dunking,” Jaquez said. “I was obsessed with it. When I was a kid, I would always dream about being able to dunk. And then now, here I am in the dunk contest. So I think that little kid would be pretty proud of himself.”

So far this season, Jaquez is averaging 12.9 points, 3.9 rebounds, and 2.6 assists per game while shooting 49.2 percent from the field. He has brought a huge spark to the team as Miami is 30-25 heading into the All-Star break which puts them seventh in the Eastern Conference.