PORTLAND, Ore. — In the NBA multiverse, Tuesday night’s Miami Heat game against the Portland Trail Blazers at Moda Center had been set up as an alternate reality for Jaime Jaquez Jr. and Nikola Jovic.
For days, weeks, months, the two were among those mentioned as potential trade pieces in the trade with the Portland Trail Blazers for Damian Lillard that never got done.
Granted, it was the bigger pieces, players such as since-departed Kyle Lowry or still-remaining Duncan Robinson and Tyler Herro, that stood as salary-cap linchpins.
But with Jaquez and Jovic, it was about the youth that could have been delivered to what very much remains an ongoing Blazers rebuild.
“I mean, sometimes it’s hard to ignore rumors, although I kept my focus in Miami,” Jaquez said ahead of Tuesday night’s game. “There were obvious possibilities. There’s always going to be possibilities in this job, in this profession. But I’m happy I’m here.”
But did the mind ever wander to this corner of the Pacific Northwest?
“I mean, I think everybody would be lying if they said they didn’t,” Jaquez said of at least briefly considering how he might have fit with Portland’s mix. “You think of different opportunities, different situations. You’ve got to be prepared; you’ve got to be ready.
“But at the same time, I kept my focus on Miami. This is where I was. I wasn’t really looking at going anywhere else until anything happened.”
For Jovic it was a similar approach. But he said on the eve of the game against the Blazers that, yes, he took note of where the next chapter of his career might have unfolded.
“You see a lot of things,” Jovic said. “I’m not going to say I was thinking a lot about it, but of course it crosses your mind.”
Particularly when Lillard finally wasn’t dealt to the Milwaukee Bucks until Sept. 27, on the eve of training camp, from a trade request made in early July.
“But it’s not like I have anything against Portland,” said Jovic, able to return against the Trail Blazers after being suspended for Monday night’s victory over the Sacramento Kings for leaving the bench during Friday night’s melee against the New Orleans Pelicans at the start of this four-game trip. “Of course, you think about that they’re in a rebuild mode and you think about it if you’re going to play or not.
“Me and Jaime were not the biggest pieces in the trade, but of course you think if you’re going to be in a package.”
To Heat coach Erik Spoelstra the benefit of developing in a system where winning is the priority is the ultimate fast track to a successful career. With what the Blazers are going through at the bottom of the Western Conference, the numbers certainly could have been higher for Jaquez, but also the losses for last June’s No. 18 pick out of UCLA.
“I agree 100 percent,” Jaquez said of Spoelstra’s view of the Heat citing winning as a higher education. “I think that’s the most important thing, is learning how to win, and taking that very seriously.
“I think he makes a great point of do you want double numbers, or do you want numbers that impact winning? And I’m always going to take the numbers that impact winning, no matter what that is.”
Jaquez proved as much with his difference-making 26-point performance against the Kings.
Jovic agreed that the meaningful minutes with the Heat resonate more than they might have with a rebuilding team.
“Of course, you can see here, even at this point I’ve learned a lot about winning,” said the No. 27 pick in the 2022 draft out of Serbia. “Just being around this whole organization, especially with a coach like Spo, every day, the only thing he talks about is winning and impacting winning. And that’s what I’m trying to do.
“I’ve always said it, if I can impact winning here, I can impact winning any place else.”