Lakers ‘Blew It’ by Passing on Coveted Heat Rookie Star: NBA Exec

Getty The Lakers missed their chance to pick Heat rookie Jaime Jaquez Jr. last year.

Maybe in the long term, point guard Jalen Hood-Schifino will work out for the Los Angeles Lakers. In his NBA career thus far, though, he has played 63 minutes in seven games, and amassed all of 18 points. That’s fine for a long-term rookie project, except for two things. One, the Lakers are in win-now mode, with their star player, LeBron James, at age 39. And the other, some within the Lakers organization wanted the team to draft versatile UCLA star Jaime Jaquez Jr. with the 17^th pick, one spot before the Miami Heat nabbed him.

The Lakers will get an up-close look at Jaquez on Wednesday night as he visits Southern California for the first time since his NBA career started. The Heat are on a five-game Western Conference swing, and played the Clippers on Monday.

As one Western Conference executive told Heavy Sports, “I know there were some people in that organization who wanted Jaime Jaquez to stay in California and be a Laker. He was the perfect role player for what they needed, he is a tough kid, he is a grinder. You could watch him last year and just tell h was ready to chip in for a good NBA team. The Laker like to use their picks to take big swings and not the safe bet, and that is how they were looking at Jalen. But they needed guys who could play now. And look at what Jaquez is doing. They blew it, for sure.”

Jaime Jaquez Jr. Has Been 2nd Best 2023 Draftee

All that Jaime Jaquez Jr. is doing is averaging 13.7 points on 50.4% shooting and 35.4% 3-point shooting for the Heat. He has been solid as a rebounder and passer, and can hold his own defensively at three positions. He is third in last year’s draft class in scoring and, most important, second in minutes, at 29.4. The Heat are 19-14 when he plays, and he has a strong claim to being the No. 2 player from the 2023 draft after top pick Victor Wembanyama.

Jaquez did not officially work out for the Lakers ahead of last year’s draft, but as a four-year UCLA player, the team had plenty of knowledge on him. But Jaquez insisted this week that he did not want to be a Laker.

“I wanted to get away,” he said, per the Sun-Sentinel. “I think, for myself, I thought it was important for me to be able to go out of my comfort zone and experience something new. I didn’t want to be a guy that said, ‘Oh, I just stayed in Southern California all my life.’

“I wanted to go live in a different, new place. And that’s why I was very excited to go to Miami. It was new. Everyone compares it, but I think it’s very, very different.”

Lakers Could Use a Rookie Like That

That has worked out nicely for the Heat, who prepare for their second matchup against the Lakers tonight. The team has been wracked by injuries to stars Tyler Herro, Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo, but Jaquez has been one of the keys in keeping the Heat afloat during their hard times.

Coach Erik Spoelstra has been very complimentary of the work Jaquez has done and the way he’s fit into the Heat’s operation. The Lakers loss has been their gain.

“He had to break his way into a rotation. He had to learn to be a role player. He had to learn to earn more minutes, more opportunities, play in hostile environments, find different ways to win in the tournament. I think all that does matter. At least to us,” Spoelstra said of Jaquez.

“He has a moxie to him, he has an experience level that you can feel that kind of transcends his age,” Spoelstra said. “But he just makes winning plays. This is a game that I thought he had around 21 points. I didn’t think he had that kind of game because he does a lot of stuff without the ball in his hands.”