Who is Kasparas Jakucionis? Meet Heat's steal of the NBA Draft

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On most draft boards, Kasparas Jakucionis ranked as a lottery pick, in the top-14.

The Miami Heat just got him at No. 20 overall in Wednesday night's NBA Draft first round.

Talk about a steal.

The versatile wing from Illinois is heading to South Beach.

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Where is Kasparas Jakucionis from?

Kasparas Jakucionis is from Lithuania.

He eventually moved to play in Spain for Barcelona, first on their youth team and then getting action with the senior squad.

In May 2024, he committed to play college basketball at the University of Illinois.

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Kasparas Jakucionis had a great freshman season at Illinois.

He averaged 15.0 points, 5.7 rebounds and 4.7 assists per game.

His swing skill might be shooting, given that he shot just 31.8% from 3.

But his shooting mechanics look solid, and the 6-foot-6 wing could improve on that while maintaining his well-rounded game at the NBA level.

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