I instinctively like Jaquez as a player. He's that combination of hustle, defensive instincts, and 'willing to do a little bit of everything' that Boston fans appreciate in our rotation guys. It feels like his most likely NBA career trajectory is a slightly longer (and maybe somewhat better) Josh Richardson.
Along those lines: he's never been an on-the-ball instigator who takes defenders off the dribble and creates for himself or anyone else. He's always been an off-the-ball garbage man/short roll finisher in the circle, who shoots poorly on catch-and-shoot 3s even when he has time and the defenses sag off of him. In game 1, out of desperation, the Heat are asking him to create penetration (for himself and others) against some of the best perimeter defenders in the league.
Take a rookie, ask him to play a role he's never played at any level, in the playoffs, against a top 5 defense... I think he's going to have his moments. But it's going to be a rough series for him. As a very rough comp: it's taken Jaylen something like ~6 years to make good decisions without turning the ball over off dribble penetration. Even if Jaquez gets there, it's probably not going to be in the next two weeks.
