Jimmy Butler, Bam Adebayo Show Love To Jaime Jaquez Jr. Following Impressive Debut

The Miami Heat selected UCLA forward Jaime Jaquez Jr. with the No. 18 pick in last year’s draft

Miami Heat rookie Jaime Jaquez Jr. showed flashes of star potential in their regular-season opener against the Detroit Pistons.

Jaquez recorded a statline of six points, two rebounds, two assists, and two steals on 100 percent shooting. In 13 minutes on the court, Jaquez filled up the box score. He also brought energy on the defensive end.

Following the hard-fought victory, Miami’s All-Stars Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo showed high praise for the first-year forward.

Butler on Jaquez: “He gets right to it, you know, in the mid-post, takes the right shots, kicks the ball out incredibly well. Like I said, this might be his rookie year, but he's played basketball in a winning manner for so long that he's doing it on this level now," Butler said. "So as the game slows down for him, as it will, he’ll just continually get better."

Adebayo on Jaquez: "Jaime’s not a regular rookie, a guy that's experienced; he's been in big games; he's been in those games where he's needed to be a leader; he's needed to be the one option, and that's through all those years in college," Adebayo said. "Me and Tyler came in here at 19 one year at college and gotta figure it out. I feel like he's coming to the league ready, and you know he's building on his moment."

Butler and Adebayo had solid performances against the Pistons, but did not hesitate to put the spotlight on the rookie.

If Jaquez continues to show progress on both ends of the floor, his role on the team will only increase.

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Anthony Pasciolla works as a contributing writer to Inside the Heat.

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