​The Miami Heat could include Jaime Jaquez Jr. in a trade package for Ja Morant. GettyThe Miami Heat knew acquiring Giannis Antetokounmpo would come at a steep price.For Jaime Jaquez Jr., that price meant leaving the only NBA organization he had ever known.Speaking with the South Florida Sun Sentinel’s Ira Winderman during NBA Summer League in Las Vegas, the former Heat first-round pick acknowledged for the first time how difficult it was to be included in the blockbuster trade that sent him to the Milwaukee Bucks.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisement“It was definitely devastating for sure,” Jaquez told Winderman. “I love Miami. I love this city. It really felt like home to me.”Jaquez was one of four players Miami shipped to Milwaukee—along with Tyler Herro, Kel’el Ware and rookie Kasparas Jakucionis—in the franchise-altering deal that brought Antetokounmpo and Bobby Portis to South Florida.While the trade immediately elevated the Heat back into the championship conversation, it also ended Jaquez’s three-year tenure with the organization that drafted him with the No. 18 overall pick in 2023.Jaime Jaquez Jr.Getty The Miami Heat included Jaime Jaquez Jr. in the trade package to acquire two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementJaquez quietly developed into one of Miami’s most dependable young players.He earned NBA All-Rookie First Team honors as a rookie before appearing in 216 regular-season games for the Heat, making 56 starts while averaging 12.1 points, 4.3 rebounds and 2.9 assists in 28.5 minutes per game. He shot 49.1% from the field during his Miami career and established himself as one of Erik Spoelstra’s most versatile two-way wings.Last season, Jaquez posted career highs across the board, averaging 15.4 points, 5.0 rebounds and 4.7 assists while shooting 55.3% from the floor in 83 games. His breakout campaign earned him runner-up honors in the NBA Sixth Man of the Year voting.Those steady contributions ultimately made him one of Miami’s most valuable trade assets.One of the defining images from the trade surfaced only minutes after news of the deal broke.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementA viral social media video showed Jaquez learning about the blockbuster while playing pickup basketball at an LA Fitness in California.Jaquez confirmed to Winderman that the reaction captured in the clip was genuine.“That was a real video,” Jaquez said.Although he admitted he sensed a trade was possible, Jaquez said the reality of leaving Miami still caught him emotionally.“I had a feeling,” Jaquez told Winderman. “I knew that it was definitely a possibility that it was going to happen. But you’re never truly prepared for when it does.”The trade also may provide Jaquez with his clearest path yet to a full-time starting role.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementWhile he became one of Spoelstra’s most trusted rotation players in Miami, much of his success came as the leader of