The Miami Heat are not playing their best basketball. In fact, they are playing some of their worst, losing seven of their last eight, highlighted by a brutal 17-point loss to the Indiana Pacers on Sunday.
However, it’s not all bad.
With just two weeks left in the regular season, much of the discussion around the league will revolve around not only the postseason picture, but awards. And one player who’s squarely set himself above the others for the Sixth Man of the Year award is Jaime Jaquez Jr., who you could wager on Kalshi!
Over his last 17 games, the third-year wing is averaging 14.5 points, 3.9 rebounds and 4.9 assists on 48.7 percent shooting and 56.3 percent shooting off the team’s bench.
From the start of 2025-26, Jaquez has been one of the Heat’s most valuable cogs offensively. Given his impact and consistency off the team’s bench, he should be the unquestioned favorite to win some hardware at season’s end.
Jaime Jaquez Jr. should be favorite for Sixth Man of Year award:
Jaquez entered this season with plenty to prove after a down 2024-25 season. He’s bounced back emphatically as one of their most reliable downhill creators and finishers.
Having played 68 up to this point, he will qualify for the award. There are still two weeks left in the season, so here’s where he ranks among bench players who have played at least 50 games up to this point:
- Points scored: 1st
- Points per game: 1st
- Rebounds: 7th
- Assists: 1st
- Steals: 18th
- Plus-Minus: 11th
- FG% (min. 250 FGA): 11th
Currently, Keldon Johnson is the odds-on-favorite to win the award, even though Jaquez has been just as impactful in a worse context. Moreover, Jaquez has been one of the Heat’s most important players, a driving reason why the Heat have climbed into the top half of the NBA in offense after being a bottom-third unit each of the last two seasons.
Miami is expected to be a play-in team for the fourth-consecutive season. Jaquez’s surge — after a down 2024-25 season — is far from the reason why. Team success will always be baked into who ultimately wins the award, but for this specific award, that should be irrelevant when Jaquez tops the NBA in multiple statistical categories.