Wednesday night in the NBA seemed like the dunk contest. Houston Rockets big man Alperen Sengun threw down a dunk over Jazz veteran Kevin Love while drawing contact and getting the and-one. But that dunk was topped during the Miami Heat’s preseason game against the San Antonio Spurs when Jaime Jaquez Jr. did the unthinkable and soared over Victor Wembanyama.

The dunk happened when Jaime Jaquez cut down the middle as Heat rookie guard Kasparas Jakucionis came across the lane, saw the cutting Jaquez, hit him with a pass and watched him climb the Victor Wembanyama mountain with a tomahawk. It was a very impressive dunk considering the situation, and served as a reminder as to why Jaquez was a participant in the NBA’s dunk contest as a rookie.

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But the dunk aside, this is shaping up to be a big year for Jaquez. After a promising rookie year in 2024-25, Jaquez took a bit of a step back during his second year in the NBA.

Last season, Jaquez appeared in 66 games, including 17 starts, at a little over 20 minutes per game. He averaged 8.6 points, 4.4 rebounds and 2.5 assists with splits of 46.1 percent shooting from the field, 31.1 percent shooting from the three-point line and 75.4 percent shooting from the free-throw line.

In comparison, during his rookie year he appeared in 75 games, including 20 starts, at a little over 28 minutes per game. He averaged 11.9 points, 3.8 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1.0 steals with splits of 48.9 percent shooting from field, 32.2 percent shooting from the three-point line and 81.1 percent shooting from the free-throw line. He finished fourth in the Rookie of the Year voting.