Former Utah State basketball star Sam Merrill is reportedly headed back to the NBA.
According to The Athletic’s Shams Charania and Kelsey Russo, the Cleveland Cavaliers are planning on signing Merrill to a 10-day contract.
The Cleveland Cavaliers are planning to sign guard Sam Merrill to a 10-day contract out of their NBA G League Charge affiliate, sources tell me and @kelseyyrusso.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) March 1, 2023
The Cavaliers will be the third NBA franchise Merrill has suited up for during the regular season and/or playoffs, along with the Milwaukee Bucks and Memphis Grizzlies.
(Merrill signed with the Sacramento Kings last August but was waived ahead of the current NBA season).
Merrill, who ranks second in Utah State history in both total points scored (2,197) and assists (477), had been playing for the Cavaliers’ G-League affiliate, the Cleveland Charge.
In 17 games played this season for the Charge, Merrill averaged 15.2 points per game and shot 42% from 3-point range.
The 60th overall pick in the 2020 NBA draft, Merrill spent his rookie season with the Bucks, appearing in 30 games and eventually winning a NBA championship.
Last season with the Grizzlies, Merrill appeared in just six games, as well as two games with the franchise’s G-League affiliate, the Memphis Hustle.
In his two-year NBA career, Merrill has averaged 3.2 points per game and shot 40% from behind the arc.
The Cavaliers are currently No. 4 in the Eastern Conference standings with a 39-25 record, behind presumed NBA title contenders in the Bucks (44-17) Boston Celtics (44-18) and Philadelphia 76ers (39-21).
Former Utah Jazz All-Star Donovan Mitchell has been dynamic for the Cavaliers this season, along with Darius Garland, Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen.
Cleveland is currently tied with Philadelphia for the fourth-best net rating in the entire NBA, behind the Celtics, Buck and Denver Nuggets.
If the NBA playoffs started today, the Cavaliers would host the New York Knicks (36-27) in a first-round best-of-seven series.