Jaime Jáquez Jr., Mexican NBA prospect

Mexican-American Jaime Jáquez Jr. is one of the few Mexican basketball players to have made it to the NBA, and at 23 years old, he’s already emerging as one of the most successful

The NBA’s legacy in Mexico continues to grow little by little. This time, a name that is starting to steal all the spotlight is Jaime Jáquez Jr., a basketball player born to Mexican parents in Irvine, California in 2001. At 23 years old, he stands out as one of the most promising young talents in professional basketball and joins the select list of Mexicans who have managed to step onto the NBA courts.

During his amateur career at university, he stood out with his performances at UCLA

Jáquez started playing basketball at a young age and decided to join his high school team in Camarillo, beginning a career that soon began to stand out with his arrival at university, where he became part of the basketball UCLA team from 2019 to 2023, marking the first Hispanic player since 2008 when Lorenzo Mata wore the team’s colors.

He quickly earned a starting position in November 2019, and as a freshman, he averaged 8.9 points and 4.8 rebounds per game. In 2020, he had one of his best seasons and his standout game with UCLA, scoring 27 points to come back from a deficit against Michigan State.

At the beginning of the 21-22 season, he temporarily suspended his activities due to an ankle injury. However, he quickly returned to continue improving his numbers and remained one of the standout players on his team. After his college basketball career, he entered the NBA Draft.

Jaime Jáquez Jr. became the first Mexican selected in the first round of the NBA draft.

The forward completed his four-year cycle in college sports and then attended the NBA Draft, where he was selected to join the Miami Heat in 2023, chosen at the 18th position, marking a historic precedent as the highest-selected Mexican-American (during the first round).

Despite being the sixth Mexican to play in the NBA, Jaime Jáquez Jr. set a historic milestone among the Aztecs who set foot on American soil by scoring 20 points, putting himself on par with Juan Toscano; shortly after, he improved his own record to 22 points.

Jáquez went for more: on Christmas Day 2023, he managed to raise this to 21 points and set the highest tally for a Mexican in the league, further establishing his name to be one of the top rookies in the NBA.

The Mexican-American was named Rookie of the Month and was part of the All-Stars Weekend in 2024

Jaime shined during the NBA Slam Dunk Contest where he was participating in Indianapolis, and although he didn’t finish among the top spots, his performance stole most of the spotlight: the entire basketball world was talking about him and his participation in the All-Stars Weekend 2024.

Two key parts of his performance were one of his early dunks, where he jumped over the legendary player Shaquille O’Neal and surprised everyone with his first performance of the night. He explained that O’Neal was one of his childhood inspirations, which is why he decided to present himself in that manner at the Lucas Oil Stadium.

He also paid tribute to the Mexicans who have left a legacy in the NBA by having the LED screen painted with the Mexican flag, and the names of Horacio Llamas, Eduardo Nájera, Gustavo Ayón, Jorge Gutiérrez, and Juan Toscano were displayed. Jaime Jáquez Jr. was entrusted with continuing the tricolor legacy in the NBA.

With information from ESPN and Olympics