Kasparas Jakucionis is struggling in the ongoing NBA Summer League. Through his first two games, the Miami Heat rookie has only compiled seven points, made only one field goal out of 10 attempts, and missed all seven three-point attempts. He also has more turnovers (eight) than assists (three) during this span.
The former Illinois guard has received some timely advice from teammate Kel’el Ware, who had been in this position last year as a rookie playing for the Miami Heat in the Summer League.
“I was speaking to him yesterday, because we walked back from the game, and I was just telling him, ‘Hey, you know, it’s summer league for a reason. You work on your stuff,'” Ware said to Jakucionis via Miami Herald’s Anthony Chiang. “I told him if you’re going to shoot, don’t think about it. You let it go, trust yourself.”
On the other hand, Ware is doing well for the Miami Heat, compiling 26 points through two games, including a 12-point effort against the Los Angeles Lakers last Sunday in 28 minutes of action.
Miami Heat News: Norman Powell trade named as “absolute home run” by NBA analyst
In case you missed it, the Miami Heat recently completed a three-team trade with the Utah Jazz and the Los Angeles Clippers, which saw them acquire Norman Powell and part ways with Kevin Love and John Collins.
Powell, 32, is fresh from a breakout 2024-25 campaign, where he averaged 21.8 points, 3.2 rebounds, 2.1 assists, and 1.2 steals on 48/42/80 shooting splits across 60 regular season games for the Los Angeles Clippers/
“Miami just gets Norm Powell for like nothing. It’s an absolute home run for the Heat,” Zach Lowe said on his podcast.
