Is Jaime Jaquez Jr. The Best Miami Heat Rookie Since Dwayne Wade?
Jaime Jaquez Jr. has put in a memorable rookie season.
The 18th overall pick in the 2023 NBA Draft has averaged 12.9 points while playing a pivotal role for the Miami Heat. Jaquez is averaging the fifth-most points and third-most steals among rookies this year.
Although it is only halfway through the year, is it too soon to say that Jaquez has been the best Heat rookie since Dwayne Wade in 2003-04? Wade averaged 16.2 points during his rookie season. He immediately turned the Heat from a team that missed the playoffs into a top-four seed in the Eastern Conference one year later.
There have been other great Heat rookies over the past two decades as well. Kendrick Nunn’s first-year performance during the 2018-19 season is the most recent great rookie season by a Heat player. He finished second in the Rookie Of The Year voting that season. Nunn averaged 15.3 points in 67 games.
Michael Beasley is the highest-drafted player in Heat history, as he was taken second overall in 2008. Beasley averaged 13.9 points and 5.4 rebounds during his first year in the association.
Jaquez’s started the year without much of a defined role. He steadily showed his worth in the rotation and garnered more minutes. Jaquez has appeared in the second-most games and played in the second-most minutes on the team.
It will be interesting to see how Jaquez stacks up against other rookies when the year is all finished. He will also be among some of the best rookies that the Heat have had over the past 20 years.
Casey Fahrer is a contributor to Inside The Heat. He can be reached at caseyfahrer716@gmail.com.
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