Jaime Jaquez Jr. may completely change the way the Miami Heat approaches their future with the leap that he's made this season. If Jaquez Jr. can continue to play at this level all season long, it's going to be difficult for the Heat not to consider him a foundational piece of the future.
Heading into the start of the season, the Heat were hoping (and almost expecting) to see one or two of their young players to take big jumps in their development. But if you had polled the fan base who those two players would be, the majority of them would've said Kel'el Ware and Nikola Jovic.
While both of those players have had their moments this season, none have looked quite as impressive as Jaquez Jr.
With Tyler Herro out of the lineup, Jaquez Jr. has quickly become one of the most important players on the Heat's roster. His versatility on both ends of the floor, Jaquez Jr. is the team's third-leading scorer, third-best rebounder, and second-best playmaker.
Jaquez Jr. is still struggling with his 3-point shot, but it's hard not to be impressed with 18 points, seven rebounds, and five assists per game on 53 percent shooting from the field.
How Jaquez Jr. could change the Heat's future
As a player who entered this season with many questions about his future in Miami, there's an argument to be made that he becomes one that the team desperately needs to re-sign. And if the Heat feels they need to re-sign Jaquez Jr., it certainly complicates things for their bigger names that are due for extensions, too.
I'm not going to say that the Heat should decide to invest in Jaquez Jr. over Herro and/or Norman Powell, but his rise to fringe-stardom this season will certainly complicate both of those situations.
It's only been 13 games, and Jaquez Jr. still needs to prove that this is the player he is now, but there's no question that his rise this season has certainly begun to alter the outlook for the team. They may not admit that publicly, but it's something that is probably being discussed behind closed doors.
And the Heat should feel good about that. After all, that's what this season was supposed to be about.
Beyond their hot start to the year, this season was always about figuring out which players on their roster were keepers and which were expendable. While much of that still has to be decided, it's beginning to look more and more like Jaquez Jr. is a keeper.
I'm not sure there are many fans who would've agreed with that statement before the start of the season.