Heat’s Jaime Jaquez Jr. thrilled for sister’s WNBA moment. Also, Jovic and Smith still out
Miami Heat forward Jaime Jaquez Jr. has had a strong third NBA season. After a shaky sophomore campaign in the NBA, he has again become a fixture in the Heat’s rotation and is among the top candidates for the NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year award.
But not many people are having a better April than Jaquez’s sister, Gabriela Jaquez.
After helping UCLA’s women’s basketball team win its first NCAA national championship on April 5, Gabriela was taken by the Chicago Sky with the fifth overall pick in Monday’s WNBA Draft.
“She’s got the natty. She got drafted top five,” Jaquez said ahead of Tuesday night’s win-or-go-home play-in tournament matchup against the Charlotte Hornets at Spectrum Center. “I mean, I can’t name another person who’s having a better week than her right now.
“She’s on top of the world right now, and she deserves it. So I’m really happy for her.”
In addition to never winning a national championship at UCLA, Jaquez was drafted into the NBA 13 spots lower than Gabriela was drafted into the WNBA. The Heat selected Jaquez with the 18th overall pick in the 2023 NBA Draft.
So, is Gabriela the more accomplished Jaquez in the basketball world?
“I mean, if that’s how you want to put it out, she’ll take it,” Jaquez said with a smile.
But Heat coach Erik Spoelstra didn’t want any part of that debate.
“I’m not getting involved in that,” Spoelstra said with a laugh. “I’m sure they’re talking a bunch of [expletive] to each other in the family, but what an amazing story. The parents have two children that starred at UCLA in their backyard and then both get drafted. That’s pretty amazing. They’re just quality people, too.”
Jaquez said he told his sister after Monday’s WNBA Draft “how proud I was and how this is such an amazing moment and that Chicago is beautiful in the summertime.”
Jaquez already has his order in for Gabriela’s Chicago Sky jersey.
“I know my family is ordering a bunch,” he said. “Hopefully it’s not sold out. Maybe I can get one in my size.”
Jovic and Smith still sidelined
The Heat opens the postseason Tuesday without forward Nikola Jovic and guard Dru Smith.
Jovic missed the Heat’s last four regular-season games due to a sprained left ankle, and he remains out for Tuesday’s elimination play-in tournament game in Charlotte.
Jovic, who has never played in more than 47 regular-season games during his four-year NBA career because of injury issues, also was sidelined for the Heat’s play-in tournament appearance last season due to a broken right hand.
“It is disappointing. It’s the same place I was in last year, when I broke my hand,” Jovic said Tuesday. “These are the games that are the most fun. They mean the most because it’s really either you win or you go home.”
If the Heat advances to the playoffs through the play-in tournament, Jovic believes he could return to be available at some point during a first-round playoff series against the Eastern Conference’s top-seeded Detroit Pistons. That playoff series would begin with Game 1 on Sunday in Detroit.
It has been a rough season for 22-year-old Jovic because of injuries and inconsistent play, eventually falling out of the Heat’s rotation after starting the season opener. He missed five games due to a hip injury, four games due to an elbow injury, 11 games due to a lower back injury, and now five straight games due to a sprained ankle this season.
“I didn’t have any rhythm, didn’t have anything this year because of all those injuries,” said Jovic, who signed a four-year, $62.4 million extension with the Heat in October. “And yeah, that’s it. It’s just disappointing that I can’t stay healthy.”
As for Smith, he missed the final three games of the regular season because of a right big toe sprain and is also unavailable for Tuesday’s play-in contest. He was in a walking boot at Tuesday’s morning shootaround in Charlotte.
“Pretty frustrating,” Smith, 28, said of the toe injury. “I was healthy all year obviously, and it’s not like it’s something crazy or serious or anything like that. It’s just really poor timing. So yeah, frustrating, obviously I want to be able to, if my name was called to be able to contribute. But just going to try to do what I can to support in any way that I can.”
Smith is hopeful that he will be able to return soon if the Heat makes the playoffs through the play-in tourney, but “it just kind of depends on how everything progresses.”
Smith was a fixture in the Heat’s bench rotation for most of the regular season, playing in 70 of the 79 games he was available for.
“You feel for Dru, but this is not a long-term thing,” Spoelstra said. “[The walking boot] is going to speed up the process, hopefully. I’ve gotten to know him very well the last few years. He has as much resilience and fortitude as anybody in this association, so he’ll be fine. And like I said, this is a short-term thing.”
Aside from Jovic and Smith, the rest of the Heat’s 15-man standard roster is expected to be available for Tuesday’s play-in tournament matchup against the Hornets. Two-way contract players are not eligible to take part in the postseason.
Heat guard Pelle Larsson was initially listed as questionable on the injury report due to a right lower leg contusion, but he has been upgraded to available.
Heat center Kel’el Ware woke up sick on Tuesday, but he’s also expected to be available for the contest.
The Hornets will have their full standard roster available against the Heat, with no players listed on their injury report for Tuesday’s game.
This story was originally published April 14, 2026 at 1:52 PM.
