Miami Heat rookie Kasparas Jakučionis has had a strong start to training camp this week, earning praise from head coach Erik Spoelstra and the rest of the team.
Jakučionis was named to the All-Big Ten third team last season at Illinois, averaging 15 points, 5.7 rebounds and 4.7 assists on 44% shooting from 3-point range in 33 games. He led the team in scoring, tying the freshman record for total points in a season (494).
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The 20th pick projects to have the opportunity to earn rotation minutes in the backcourt, along with Davion Mitchell, Terry Rozier and Dru Smith. He appears to be making a strong case for himself, based on recent comments by Spoelstra.
All of us really loved — the guys mentioned it after the practice — the battle between him and Davion. They’re both pit bulls. Davion is a more veteran-seasoned NBA pit bull, but Kas has those kind of qualities in him. They were going after each other all in a good way; scrappiness. If you didn’t know them, you’d think that it was something else, but it is all respect. He lost a couple of the battles, but he is putting his nose in there. I love his competitiveness.
Jakučionis debuted with the Heat in summer league, averaging 9.5 points, 2.8 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.5 steals on 31.8% shooting from the field in six appearances. He dropped 24 points, four rebounds and four assists on July 11.
The 19-year-old was highly touted in the draft thanks to his ability to score at all three levels, playmaking, vision and passing. The team was particularly pleased with how he defended and brought energy to the court in each game, traits that have also been on display in practice.
Jakučionis was sidelined on Thursday due to a sprained left wrist. Though his status for their preseason opener against the Orlando Magic on Saturday in Puerto Rico is unclear, Jakučionis appears to be having a productive training camp thus far.
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This article originally appeared on Rookie Wire: Heat news: Kasparas Jakučionis draws rave reviews for competitiveness