For the third straight game on Monday for the Christmas matchup against the Sixers, the Miami Heat were without star wing Jimmy Butler, who is nursing a calf injury. But they had a guy who, at times, looked an awful lot like the team’s hobbled star—rookie Jaime Jaquez Jr. In fact, Heat coach Erik Spoelstra took the opportunity in his postgame press conference to compare Jaquez to Butler, two guys with different games but similar approaches.
Jaques scored 31 points to lead the 119-113 win over Philadelphia. He had 10 rebounds, too, his first career double-double. They output marked career highs in both categories.
And Spoelstra said he did not call any plays for Jaquez in the game.
“It’s very similar when you say something like that about Jimmy,” Spoelstra said in his postgame press conference. “You wouldn’t do this with Jimmy but Jimmy could literally play the entire game without the ball and figure out how to get 20 points without a play call. If you challenged him to do that. All those plays in between he just would dominate all that.”
Miami Heat HC Erik Spoelstra talks about Jaime Jaquez Jr. and what’s led him to this point to have a night like this. #HEATCulture
Jaime Jaquez Jr. Has Other Similarities to Jimmy Butler
There are other Jaime Jaquez Jr.-Jimmy Butler comparisons to be made, too. Neither Jaquez nor Butler were major prep recruits or AAU stars when they went to college. Both had to grow their way into national recognition in the NCAA, and neither was a lottery pick coming out of college.
Butler was the 30th pick in 2011 after three seasons at Marquette. Jaquez was the 17th pick this spring after four years at UCLA.
“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.
Like Butler, Jaquez’s approach is highlighted by a certain level of toughness.
“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.”
Erik Spoelstra Sees Growing JJJ Role With the Miami Heat
The 31 points that Jaquez scored came on an incredibly efficient 11-for-15 shooting, with 8-for-8 shooting from the free-throw line. He is now fourth in the rookie class with 13.7 points per game, and he is shooting 51.6% from the field. In all, Jaime Jaquez Jr. has played just 30 games for the Miami Heat, but already looks like a polished veteran.
“I didn’t call one play for him tonight. Literally,” Erik Spoelstra said after the game. “They were in a zone for most of the second half but throughout the rest of the game, I definitely did not call one play for him. He did it with offensive rebounding, transition, cuts, timely 3. A lot of plays in between. So you don’t really think that it’s a 30-point game.
“He’s learning the league better, but he still has more to learn about our system and how he can do things defensively. But he is tough, he is big, he competes. So the rest of it, we’ll be able to figure out.”
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Miami Heat’s Erik Spoelstra Makes Bold Star Claim on Breakout Rookie