Jaime Jaquez Jr. just had a career year, so it feels like somewhat of a nitpick, but as he looks to take the next step with the Milwaukee Bucks, there is one area of his game he must improve: Limiting his turnovers. Despite his production, the forward turned the ball over quite a bit last season, a trend the Bucks would love to see die down as Jaquez nears potentially earning the biggest role of his career.
Turnovers were an overlooked part of Jaquez's season
Jaquez totaled 148 turnovers this past season, by far the most among any bench player. Second on the list was former Minnesota forward Naz Reid, who tallied 123. Of course, some of that comes with how significant of a role Jaquez was playing and the assists he notched. He logged the most minutes of any bench player in the 2025-26 season, so he was bound to make mistakes along the way.
Yet, it's how the turnovers were produced that leaves room for improvement; nearly 40 of those were categorized as "lost ball turnovers" by NBA.com. Whether the forward dribbled into someone and lost the ball or simply couldn't keep a grip on the ball before losing it, so many of his giveaways were self-inflicted errors. Working on getting a tighter handle could certainly be an area for the forward to grow.
Of course, it wouldn't hurt to cut out the bad passes that lead to turnovers, either, but sometimes, those are more reasonable than just losing the rock.
If Jaquez can cut back, he could take another step forward after already having a career year with the Heat in 2025-26.
Jaquez needs another career year as contract talks linger
Barring a surprising chance, Jaquez will likely enter the new NBA season without an extension from the Milwaukee Bucks. They likely want to see how he fits into their plans before handing him a long-term deal. This should give the forward the ultimate chip on his shoulder, as he has a runway to prove he's worth every penny of what a potential extension could look like.
Cutting back on his turnovers alone won't guarantee him a new contract, but it could certainly help. The young forward needs to do whatever he can to showcase his skills this season. The scoring, rebounding, and faciliating are all well-documented, but can he clean up arguably his Achilees heel? That will be a true test of his growth.
Stay tuned for more Milwaukee Bucks analyssi.
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