UCLA Basketball: Why Jaime Jaquez's NBA Fate Is Suddenly Up In The Air

A big change happened league-wide today that impacts the Bruins standout.

Gary A. Vasquez - USA TODAY Sports

Despite being selected midway through the first round out of UCLA with the No. 18 overall pick in last month's NBA draft, former Bruins forward Jaime Jaquez Jr. could very well be on the move before suiting up for his first official game (Summer League aside) with the Miami Heat, through no fault of his own.

As Bobby Marks of ESPN notes, all players inked to contracts on July 1st (i.e. most rookies) are now trade-eligible. 

The Heat have been heavily linked with Portland Trail Blazers All-NBA point guard Damian Lillard, who in turn has indicated that he would like to be flipped after 12 fruitless seasons in Portland -- specifically to Miami.

Kevin O'Connor of The Ringer has suggested that Jaquez could be one of the crucial centerpieces of a deal for Lillard, along with the pricey contracts of young shooting guard Tyler Herro and old point guard Kyle Lowry, second-year power forward Nikola Jovic, two future first round picks and one swap.

The 6'6" wing, a Camarillo native, played for four seasons with UCLA. He led the 2022-23 Bruins to the Sweet 16 in last spring's NCAA Tournament. Across 37 games last season, he posted averages of 17.8 points on .519/.317/.770 shooting splits, 2.4 dishes, and 1.5 steals a night across 33.2 minutes per.

Jaquez was a three-time All-Pac-12 Team selection (including two First Teams), a two-time Pac-12 All-Defensive Team pick, a consensus 2023 Second-Team All-American, and the 2023 Pac-12 Player of the Year. He could get some serious playing time on a lottery-bound Portland Trail Blazers team, whereas he'd probably be at the fringes of Miami's rotation.