Jaime Jaquez Jr. Shares Updates on Ankle Injuries, Rehabbing With UCLA Men's Basketball
The Bruins' top offensive option was playing hobbled for most of his junior season, and he recently gave some insight into what exactly he was fighting on the injury front.
Guard/forward Jaime Jaquez Jr., who announced in April that he was returning to UCLA men's basketball next season, sprained both ankles several times throughout the 2021-2022 campaign. Although he only missed one game, he and coach Mick Cronin spoke several times about the kind of pain he was facing on and off the court.
Jaquez spoke with Jordan Kent on an episode of Pac-12 Shootaround released Thursday morning, going into detail on how those injuries nearly cost him the season.
"There was a point in time during that season where I was really thinking about just cutting it off and stopping the season," Jaquez said. "The truth of the matter was, they told me the only way that I was gonna be able to fix my ankles was through surgery."
Instead of getting that surgery, Jaquez stayed active for UCLA and helped lead the Bruins to appearances in the Pac-12 Championship Game and Sweet 16. Jaquez wound up averaging 13.9 points, 5.7 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.1 steals per game on the season, earning spots on the All-Pac-12 First Team and All-Pac-12 Defensive Team in the process.
On top of the pain and limitations the injuries introduced, Jaquez would go weeks without practicing and was often unsure of whether or not he could take the court any given weekend. It got to the point where Jaquez had to go to Cronin and the rest of the Bruins' staff and commit to playing the rest of the season, regardless of how his role would evolve as a result.
"I was really struggling, as far as physically, mentally, just not knowing what to do," Jaquez said. "My coaches, training staff, 'We're gonna support you, we want you to play.' And I just decided I'm gonna try to do what I can to help my team."
The severity of the ankle injuries, according to Jaquez, would ebb and flow. Jaquez wore braces on both ankles for the last few months of the season, and his production would spike and dive in line with his health.
"During the stretch, there was a time where it blew up so bad I couldn't play, I think that was Oregon State at home," Jaquez said. "Eventually it started feeling a lot better towards the end, Oregon State away – crazy how that works. ... I was feeling better than I ever was that entire season, I started playing a lot better."
Jaquez scored 17 points in Corvallis that afternoon, then dropped 30 on the road against Washington two days later. Across his final nine appearances, Jaquez put up 19.3 points, 6.7 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 1.0 steal and just 1.4 turnovers per game while shooting 49.2% from the field and 82.1% from the free throw line.
UCLA's season came to a close in Philadelphia, with North Carolina getting the upper hand in the Sweet 16 on their way to the national championship game. Not long after, Jaquez finally got his long-delayed surgery, which his father Jaime Sr. told the Los Angeles Times' Ben Bolch included removing bone spurs and chips from his ankles.
The younger Jaquez told the Pac-12 Network that he was well into his recovery and rehab period, though, and that he's enjoying the offseason and California sun before he pushes to secure banner No. 12 next March. At the very least, he was healthy enough to toss out the first pitch at the Los Angeles Dodgers' matchup with the Detroit Tigers on April 29.
And for what it's worth, he hurled a perfect strike.
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