The Los Angeles Lakers had a number of intriguing options when they got on the clock with the 17th overall pick in the 2023 NBA Draft. The team chose to draft Jalen Hood-Schifino, a younger player with a lot of potential. Just one pick later, the Miami Heat took UCLA forward Jaime Jaquez Jr., and it is paying off big time.
While most of the focus on top rookies goes to Victor Wembanyama and Chet Holmgren, Jaquez has been huge for the Heat and become an extremely important piece of their rotation. Some have wondered why the Lakers chose to pass on the forward, especially as he is a Southern California product who attended Camarillo High School.
But as far as Jaquez is concerned, getting away from the area where he spent his entire life is something that was good for him. In an interview with Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel, Jaquez said he wanted to leave Southern California and was excited to go to Miami:
“I wanted to get away,” he said. “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.”
There are many people throughout the world who stay where they were born their entire life and never get the chance to experience what other places have to offer. The Lakers passing on Jaquez has given him the experience he desired and has worked out excellently for him and the Heat.
Now back in his hometown, Jaquez has the chance to show the Lakers exactly what they missed out on in passing him up, even though it ultimately worked out well for both sides.
Anthony Davis says Lakers must communicate better on defense
If the Lakers plan on getting a win over Jaquez and the Heat then they will need to be locked in defensively. And Anthony Davis believes doing so will require better communication from the team.
Davis spoke on the Lakers’ issues on that end of the floor, saying the team needs to do a better job of communicating on that end of the floor and really locking in on the little details which can be the difference in winning and losing.
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