Miami Heat forward Jaime Jaquez Jr. seems to think his role on the defensive end of the floor could grow to a point where he’s tasked with defending the best player on the opposing team.
“I think obviously with losing Caleb [Martin] this year, I think there’s definitely going to be a hole to be filled when it comes to the defensive side of the ball and a guy that can really go out there and stop the other team’s best player or whoever’s got it going that night,” Jaquez said of potentially stepping in as a defensive closer.
“I think my role can definitely evolve into somebody who Coach just decides, ‘Hey, Jaime I want you to go guard the best player and chase him and stop him.’ I think that’s the way my role can evolve.”
Jaquez also said that he learned a lot from instances when he had to guard some of the better players in the NBA last season when he was a rookie.
“Being able to guard guys like LeBron [James], DeMar [DeRozan], Jaylen Brown, it’s just a bunch of great, great guys that have really allowed me to learn from them, just by being able to guard them,” Jaquez said. “I think I’m going to take all that experience I had in my first year and use that to improve in my second.”
The 23-year-old acknowledged that he isn’t without his holes as a defensive player.
“I think ultimately just being solid on defense,” Jaquez said as he named an area focus entering training camp and the new season. “I know that at times I can get a little over aggressive and make some careless mistakes, whether it be reaching or trying to have a moment.
“I think an area that I can really improve on is just being very sound when it comes to my defense, not doing too much, making sure that I’m making it as tough a shot as possible.”
Jaquez was one of the top rookies in the league during the 2023-24 regular season. He had his moments on defense, but he really made a name for himself with his play on the offensive side of the ball.
He averaged 11.9 points, 3.8 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game in 75 games played and 20 starts with the Heat during the regular season. Jaquez averaged the sixth-most points per game of any rookie (among those with at least 50 regular-season appearances) and also proved to be a serviceable ancillary distributor at times.
Jaquez was a strong defender in college, and he clearly has a lot of confidence in his potential to become a vital defensive player at the NBA level after gaining some valuable defensive experience as a rookie.
He was named to the Pac-12’s All-Defensive Team in his second and third seasons at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). On top of that, he averaged 1.3 steals and 0.5 blocks per contest across 134 total games played in his collegiate career. As a rookie in the NBA, he averaged 1.0 steal and 0.3 blocks per game.
Jaquez has only one pro season under his belt and won’t turn 24 until February. Hence, he still has plenty of developing and growing to do as a player, including on the defensive end. But he appears to be serious about his desire to improve as a defender.