NBA
Jaime Jáquez Jr the surprise in NBA All-Rookie team: full team revealed
The Mexican, who plays for the Miami Heat, was the surprise name in the NBA All-Rookie team of 2023-24.
The NBA has witnessed an unparalleled moment in the history of basketball as Miami Heat rookie Jaime Jáquez Jr. was chosen as one of the five members of the All-Rookie Team for the 2023-24 NBA season.
The player won the honour of the best rookie in the Eastern Conference in November and December 2023 and was a decisive member of the solid season of the team led by Erik Spoelstra, which went beyond the Play-In and reached the first round of the playoffs, where they were eliminated by the Boston Celtics after five games.
This is the first time that a Mexican basketball player has been chosen for the NBA’s end-of-season quintet.
Who made the NBA All-Rookie team?
Triple J’ joins San Antonio Spurs French star Victor Wembanyama, who received the Rookie of the Year award last week. Rounding out the quintet are Chet Holmgren of the Oklahoma City Thunder, also a ROY contender, as well as Brandon Miller of the Charlotte Hornets and Brandin Podziemski of the Golden State Warriors.
Jáquez Jr. was considered a candidate for the final three Rookie of the Year for much of the season (the NBA Rookie Ladder ranked him third through February), but a mid-season injury and a slight drop in play after the post-All Star break saw his chances of contending for the award drop.
Jáquez Jr.’s adaptation to the NBA in his first season was both immediate and unexpected. His four years of experience in the NCAA, with the UCLA Bruins moulded a player with a high IQ, skilled in transitions, smart in the rotation of the ball on the perimeter and lethal close to the basked thanks to his nippy footwork.
He arrived in the NBA with the key characteristics of a fully-fledged professional. His style, moreover, fit with the team culture of Spoelstra and Pat Riley’s Heat, who like long possessions.
He alternated starts with substitutions and served as a de-facto sixth man for much of the season. He set a Mexican record for points in an NBA game: 31 against the Philadelphia Sixers on December 25, 2023; a month earlier he had scored 22 against the Cleveland Cavaliers to break the mark of 20 that belonged to Juan Toscano-Anderson.
He participated in the All-Star Weekend dunk contest in Indiana, although he was unable to reach the finals (he was eliminated in the first round, after two poor qualification attempts). He received multiple accolades from his teammates, such as superstars Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo.
His statistical line was the most extensive in terms of points for a Mexican basketball player in NBA history: his scoring average was 11.9, 3.8 rebounds, 2.6 assists, 48.6% efficiency from the field, 1 steal, 0.3 blocks, a positive plus/minus of 1.4, and 28.2 minutes on the court. An incredibly solid season, one well above expectations, has concluded with a place in the All-Rookie Team.