Heat's Jaime Jaquez Jr. addresses 'personal' USA, Mexico national team decision

11/02/2024 01:15 PM

As the Miami Heat take on the Washington Wizards Saturday night in Mexico, it will be a special moment for star Jaime Jaquez Jr. as his heritage traces back to the country. While Jaquez spoke about his goal to represent basketball to Mexico, he has the ability to represent the country on the international stage if he wanted to.

Jaquez was asked about this Friday to the media before the special game in Mexico where he because of his dual-citizenship, if he would represent Mexico or the United States moving forward. The player in his second year in the NBA would say he has not come up with a decision yet and is still looking at all the possibilities according to Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald

"No, I have not," Jaquez said. "You guys know me and my background. I was obviously born in California. My dad is full Mexican. His mother was an immigrant, immigrated to America. So I grew up in California. I grew up doing the USA Basketball camps. Then, obviously, I played for Mexico during the Pan American Games. After that, I stepped away from national teams, understanding how that pressure could build and how the fans would react to going from USA to Mexico. So I kind of took a step away from that, trying to look at all opportunities and really just figure out what's best for me."

Heat’s Jaime Jaquez Jr. on debating the decision with his family

As Jaquez mentioned, hd played for Mexico's national team at the Pan American Games when he was 19 years old before he switched to be a part of the Team USA program when he was on the select team this past summer. The Heat star in Jaquez has made some improvements for this season, but said the decision will be consulted with his family, but was candid in saying that his focus now is his development with Miami.

"It's a decision that's going to be personal to myself and what I feel, as well as my family," Jaquez said when speaking about the decision between USA and Mexico. "I consult them with almost everything that I do. So when that time comes, I'll be ready to make that decision. But right now, I'm just focused on my team that I have right now and that's the Heat."

Heat’s Erik Spoelstra on Jaime Jaquez Jr.’s involvement with Team USA

As mentioned before, Jaquez was on the Team USA select team that helped the main group prepare for the Paris Olympics which they ended up winning the gold medal. There were many Heat ties as Bam Adebayo and Erik Spoelstra were on the gold medal team as even the head coach himself spoke about Jaquez’s decision and knows how much “representing Mexico” means to him.

"If you're on the Select Team as a young player, you're in the [Team USA] program," Spoelstra said Friday. "That doesn't guarantee anything because there are so many players that want to be a part of the program. But if you're in, you don't want to step out. But I know that his heritage is really important to him. When we drafted him, he did talk about representing Mexico potentially. It's always good to have options."

Heat’s Jaime Jaquez Jr. has “ultimate goal” in playing in Mexico

Jaquez joins a rare group in NBA history as he is the sixth person to have Mexican citizenship and the first to be drafted in the first round. While his mother is of Norwegian decent, his father is from Guadalajara in Mexico which is a seven-hour drive from where the game Saturday night will be in Mexico City.

"I think my ultimate goal is to share the game I love with people around the world," Jaquez, said. "I know it speaks loud to people knowing that I have Mexican heritage and to be able to play down there in front of all those fans, especially those young kids. It's going to be inspiring for them just to be able to see that. Hopefully we get a new generation, a new wave of great Mexican, Latino basketball players who want to follow this and pursue it as their passion."

At any rate, Jaquez looks to have a bigger role for the Heat as Kevin Love and Duncan Robinson will be out as the team at 2-2 look to bounce back against the Wizards before returning home Monday to host the Sacramento Kings.

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