Jaime Jaquez Jr. certainly looked like a fish out of water during his limited preseason action with the Milwaukee Bucks. Considering he was still finding his footing with his new team, it made some sense. However, some worried those shortcomings would soon bleed into the regular season. Thankfully for the Bucks, Jaquez has done a complete 180 and looks phenomenal.
Jaquez has been stellar for the Bucks
In four preseason games, Jaquez averaged nine points, three rebounds, and 2.5 assists while hitting 39.4 percent of his shots. It was tough to watch at times. Yet, in his first three regular season outings with the Milwaukee Bucks, Jaquez has put up 20.7 points, 8.7 rebounds, and 3.7 assists while sinking 61.1 percent of his shots. Talk about a leap.
The scoring stands out the most. After being one of the NBA's most productive reserves last season, Jaquez has been even better as a full-time starter. He's the team's second-leading scorer behind the hometown star Tyler Herro, scoring in a variety of ways. Above all else, his jump shot has been quite a welcome development, as he's shooting 10-of-15 (66.7 percent) on such shots.
That prolific scoring has overshadowed his well he has rebounded the ball. Jaquez, standing at just 6-foot-6, was impressive in this regard last season by hauling in five per game. He's been even better at it this season by averaging 8.7 per contest. That's the second-most on the team behind Kyle Kuzma's nine a night. This speaks to his physicality and instincts when it comes to crashing the glass.
Not extending Jaquez already looks bold
The Milwaukee Bucks had an opportunity to extend Jaime Jaquez Jr. prior to the season. It's unclear how serious dialogue was between the two sides, but nothing came of it in the end. While long-term stability would have been nice, not extending is working well in Jaquez's favor early, as he's putting up the best numbers of his career and is raising his value in the process.
Milwaukee's new forward is positioning himself to earn a significant raise next summer if he keeps the ball rolling like this.
If Jaquez wants to keep raising his value, continuing to consistently compete on defense will be vital. Coach Taylor Jenkins has challenged him to compete in that regard this season, and the forward has taken that to heart early on. If the defense remains serviceable while the numbers stay improving, he will swiftly become a long-term piece for the Milwaukee Bucks moving forward.
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