Samuel Hoskins Merrill (born May 15, 1996) is an American professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

player for the

Cleveland Cavaliers The Cleveland Cavaliers, often referred to as the Cavs, are an American professional basketball team based in Cleveland. The Cavaliers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division (NBA), Central Divis ...

of the

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). The NBA is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Ca ...

(NBA). Nicknamed “Sammy Buckets,” he was drafted with the last pick of the

2020 NBA draft The 2020 NBA draft was held on November 18, 2020. The draft was originally scheduled to be held at Barclays Center in Brooklyn on June 25, but due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it was instead conducted at ESPN's facilities in Bristol, Connecticut, wi ...

and acquired by the

Milwaukee Bucks The Milwaukee Bucks are an American professional basketball team based in Milwaukee. The Bucks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division (NBA), Central Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), East ...

, with whom he won an

NBA championship The NBA Finals is the annual championship series of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The Eastern Conference (NBA), Eastern and Western Conference (NBA), Western Conference champions play a best-of-seven series to determine the league ...

. He played

college basketball College basketball is basketball that is played by teams of Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. In the Higher education in the United States, United States, colleges and universities are governed by collegiate athle ...

for the

Utah State Aggies The Utah State Aggies are the college athletics in the United States, intercollegiate athletic teams that represent Utah State University, located in Logan, Utah. Utah State fields 16 – seven men and nine women – National Collegiate Athletic ...

Early life

Merrill is the son of John and Jenny Merrill and has an older sister, Molli. He grew up in

Bountiful, Utah Bountiful is a city in Davis County, Utah. As of the 2020 census, the city population was 45,762, an eight percent increase over the 2010 figure of 42,552. The city grew rapidly during the suburb growth of the late 1940s, 1950s, and 1960s and ...

and attended

Bountiful High School Bountiful High School is a public high school in Bountiful, Utah, United States, for grades 10 to 12. The school is one of eleven high schools in the Davis School District. History Bountiful High opened in 1951. It underwent reconstruction in ...

. He became a starter as a sophomore at the midpoint in the season and averaged 6.5 points per game and 2.6 assists. As a junior, Merrill averaged 18.3 points, 6.8 rebounds, 5.4 assists, and 2.2 steals per game and was named first-team all-state by the

Deseret News The ''Deseret News'' () is a multi-platform newspaper based in Salt Lake City, published by Deseret News Publishing Company, a subsidiary of Deseret Management Corporation, which is owned by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS ...

and

Salt Lake Tribune ''The Salt Lake Tribune'' is a newspaper published in the city of Salt Lake City, Utah. The ''Tribune'' is owned by The Salt Lake Tribune, Inc., a non-profit corporation. The newspaper's motto is "Utah's Independent Voice Since 1871." History ...

. He posted 15.8 points, 7.4 assists, 4.6 rebounds, and 2.3 steals per game as a senior and led Bountiful to a 4A state title. Merrill was recruited by

Stanford Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a private research university in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 by railroad magnate Leland Stanford (the eighth governor of and th ...

and

Princeton Princeton University is a private Ivy League research university in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the Unit ...

but committed to USU.

College career

Merrill went on a two-year

mission Mission (from Latin 'the act of sending out'), Missions or The Mission may refer to: Geography Australia *Mission River (Queensland) Canada *Mission, British Columbia, a district municipality * Mission, Calgary, Alberta, a neighbourhood * ...

for

the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Restorationism, restorationist Christianity, Christian Christian denomination, denomination and the ...

to Nicaragua before his freshman year at

Utah State University Utah State University (USU or Utah State) is a public university, public land grant colleges, land-grant research university with its main campus in Logan, Utah, United States. Founded in 1888 under the Morrill Land-Grant Acts as Utah's federal ...

. When he returned, head coach

Stew Morrill Stewart Morrill (born July 25, 1952) is an American college basketball coach and the former head coach of the Utah State University men's basketball team. Biography Morrill was an All-American at Ricks College and a two-time All-Big Sky sele ...

retired and was replaced by

Tim Duryea Timothy Lee Duryea (born November 16, 1964) is an American college basketball coach who was men's basketball head coach at Utah State Aggies men's basketball, Utah State, and is currently an assistant coach at Boise State Broncos men's basketbal ...

. Merrill posted 9.4 points per game as a freshman. In his sophomore season, Merrill averaged 16.3 points per game for the Aggies. He was named Third-team All-

Mountain West Conference The Mountain West Conference (MW) is a collegiate athletic conference in the Western United States, participating in NCAA Division I. Its football teams compete in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS). The MW officially began operations on Ja ...

(MWC). Merrill married soccer player Kanyan Ward in May 2018. As a junior, Merrill averaged 20.9 points, 4.2 assists, 3.9 rebounds, and 1.1 steals per game. He shot 46.1 percent from the floor, 37.6 percent from behind the three-point line, and 90.9 percent from the free throw line. Merrill led USU to a Mountain West tournament championship, securing the automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. He was named the MWC Player of the Year and tournament MVP, as well as AP Honorable Mention

All-American The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

. Merrill had a career-high 38 points on March 5, 2019, in a 100–96 overtime victory over

Colorado State University Colorado State University (Colorado State or CSU) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Fort Collins, Colorado, United States. It is the flagship university of the Colorado State University Syst ...

(CSU).

Sam Merrill takes shot in last game as a college athlete at home

In the season opener of his senior year, Merrill had 28 points to help USU defeat

Montana State Montana State University (MSU) is a public land-grant research university in Bozeman, Montana, United States. It enrolls more students than any other college or university in the state. MSU offers baccalaureate degrees in 60 fields, master's d ...

81–73. On February 11, versus CSU, Merrill eclipsed the 2,000-point mark for his career and passed

Wayne Estes Wayne Vernon Estes (May 13, 1943 – February 8, 1965) was an American basketball player. He was a All-American Forward (basketball), forward for the Utah State Aggies men's basketball, Utah State Aggies from 1962 to 1965. Wayne is the fourth ...

for third on USU's all-time scoring list. He finished with 32 points and five assists in a 75–72 win. At the conclusion of the regular season, Merrill was named First Team All-MWC. Merrill led USU to another MWC tournament championship, securing the automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament, and was named MWC tournament MVP. The tournament was canceled because of the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

soon after his final game, where he scored 27 points in a 59–56 upset of

San Diego State San Diego State University (SDSU) is a public research university in San Diego, California, United States. Founded in 1897, it is the third-oldest university and southernmost in the 23-member California State University (CSU) system. SDSU is ...

in the tournament final and hit the game-winning three-pointer with 2.5 seconds remaining.

Professional career

Milwaukee Bucks (2020–2021)

On November 18, 2020, Merrill was selected by the

New Orleans Pelicans The New Orleans Pelicans are an American professional basketball team based in New Orleans. The Pelicans compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southwest Division (NBA), Southwest Division of the Western Confere ...

as the final pick of the

. On November 24, Merrill was traded to the

as part of a four-team trade involving the

Oklahoma City Thunder The Oklahoma City Thunder are an American professional basketball team based in Oklahoma City. The Thunder compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Northwest Division (NBA), Northwest Division of the Western Confer ...

and the

Denver Nuggets The Denver Nuggets are an American professional basketball team based in Denver. The Nuggets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Northwest Division (NBA), Northwest Division of the Western Conference (NBA), W ...

. He was assigned to the

Memphis Hustle The Memphis Hustle are an American professional basketball team of the NBA G League based in the Greater Memphis suburb of Southaven, Mississippi, and are affiliated with the Memphis Grizzlies. The team plays their home games at the Landers C ...

of the

NBA G League The NBA G League, or simply the G League, is a professional basketball league in North America that serves as the Minor league#Basketball, developmental league of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The league comprises 31 teams; as of ...

to start the G League season, making his Hustle debut on February 10, 2021. In the regular season he played in 30 games for the Bucks and started two while averaging 3.0 points and 1.0 rebound, and shot 44.7% from three, in 7.8 minutes per game. On the Bucks playoff run, Merrill appeared in 8 games, averaging 3.8 minutes and 0.6 points and rebounds per game. Merrill ended his rookie season as an NBA champion when the Bucks defeated the

Phoenix Suns The Phoenix Suns are an American professional basketball team based in Phoenix, Arizona. The Suns compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division (NBA), Pacific Division of the Western Conference (NBA), We ...

in 6 games in the

2021 NBA Finals The 2021 NBA Finals was the championship series of the National Basketball Association's (NBA) 2020–21 season and conclusion of the season's playoffs. In this best-of-seven playoff series, the Eastern Conference champion Milwaukee Bucks de ...

Memphis Grizzlies (2021–2022)

On August 7, 2021, Merrill was traded, along with two future second-round picks, to the

Memphis Grizzlies The Memphis Grizzlies (referred to locally as the Grizz) are an American professional basketball team based in Memphis, Tennessee. The Grizzlies compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southwest Division of the ...

in exchange for

Grayson Allen Grayson James Allen (born October 8, 1995) is an American professional basketball player for the Phoenix Suns of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played four years of college basketball at Duke University, where he helped Duke win a ...

. On January 1, 2022, he was waived. Merrill averaged 4.2 points and 1.2 rebounds per game in 6 games for the Grizzlies.

Cleveland Charge / Cavaliers (2022–present)

On August 13, 2022, Merrill signed with the

Sacramento Kings The Sacramento Kings are an American professional basketball team based in Sacramento, California. The Kings compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division (NBA), Pacific Division of the Western Confere ...

. He was waived prior to the start of the season. On October 24, 2022, Merrill joined the

Cleveland Charge The Cleveland Charge are an American professional basketball team in the NBA G League based in Cleveland, and are affiliated with the Cleveland Cavaliers. Since 2024, the team plays its home games at Public Auditorium in downtown Cleveland, thoug ...

training camp roster. He was the No. 1 overall pick in the

G League The NBA G League, or simply the G League, is a professional basketball league in North America that serves as the Minor league#Basketball, developmental league of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The league comprises 31 teams; as of ...

draft two days earlier. Sam Merrill

On March 3, 2023, Merrill signed a 10-day contract with the

. On March 14, he signed a multi-year contract with the Cavaliers. On December 20, he scored a career-high 27 points and hit 8 three-pointers off the bench as the Cleveland Cavaliers beat the

Utah Jazz The Utah Jazz are an American professional basketball team based in Salt Lake City. The Jazz compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Northwest Division of the Western Conference. Since the 1991–92 season, the ...

124–116. On January 22, 2024, he scored 26 points, including a career-high 20 in the first half, in a 126–99 win over the

Orlando Magic The Orlando Magic are an American professional basketball team based in Orlando, Florida. The Magic compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southeast Division (NBA), Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference (NB ...

, helping lead Cleveland to its eighth straight win. Merrill broke the franchise record for most bench three-pointers in a season on March 27, 2024. It was his 129th three-pointer off the bench for the 2023–24 season, breaking

Donyell Marshall Donyell Lamar Marshall (born May 18, 1973) is an American basketball coach and former professional player. Drafted with the fourth pick in the 1994 NBA draft, he played for eight different teams during his National Basketball Association (NBA) ...

's previous record that was set during the 2005–06 season.

Personal life

In May 2018, Merrill married Kanyan Ward. In November 2021, the couple announced they were having a baby girl and in May 2022 their daughter Kendall was born. Their second child, a son, was born February 2025.

Career statistics

NBA

Regular season

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Milwaukee Milwaukee is the List of cities in Wisconsin, most populous city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. Located on the western shore of Lake Michigan, it is the List of United States cities by population, 31st-most populous city in the United States ...

, 30 , , 2 , , 7.8 , , .444 , , .447 , , 1.000 , , 1.0 , , .7 , , .3 , , .0 , , 3.0 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Memphis Memphis most commonly refers to: * Memphis, Egypt, a former capital of ancient Egypt * Memphis, Tennessee, a major American city Memphis may also refer to: Places United States * Memphis, Alabama * Memphis, Florida * Memphis, Indiana * Mem ...

, 6 , , 0 , , 9.6 , , .333 , , .304 , , .500 , , 1.2 , , .7 , , .0 , , .0 , , 4.2 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Cleveland Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located along the southern shore of Lake Erie, it is situated across the Canada–U.S. maritime border and approximately west of the Ohio-Pennsylvania st ...

, 5 , , 0 , , 11.7 , , .409 , , .278 , , 1.000 , , 1.8 , , 1.0 , , .8 , , .0 , , 5.0 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 61 , , 1 , , 17.5 , , .402 , , .404 , , .929 , , 2.0 , , 1.8 , , .3 , , .1 , , 8.0 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 71 , , 4 , , 19.7 , , .406 , , .372 , , .966 , , 2.2 , , 1.5 , , .7 , , .2 , , 7.2 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 173 , , 7 , , 13.9 , , .405 , , .386 , , .925 , , 1.9 , , 1.4 , , .5 , , .1 , , 6.5

Playoffs

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2021 Like the year 2020, 2021 was also heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, due to the emergence of multiple Variants of SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19 variants. The major global rollout of COVID-19 vaccines, which began at the end of 2020, continued ...

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, 8 , , 0 , , 3.7 , , .286 , , .200 , , , , .6 , , .1 , , .5 , , .0 , , .6 , - , style="text-align:left;",

2024 The year saw the list of ongoing armed conflicts, continuation of major armed conflicts, including the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Myanmar civil war (2021–present), Myanmar civil war, the Sudanese civil war (2023–present), Sudane ...

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, 10 , , 0 , , 12.5 , , .345 , , .370 , , 1.000 , , 1.2 , , .9 , , .0 , , .0 , , 3.3 , - , style="text-align:left;",

2025 So far, the year has seen the continuation of major armed conflicts, including the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Sudanese civil war (2023–present), Sudanese civil war, and the Gaza war. Internal crises in Bangladesh post-resignation v ...

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, 8 , , 3 , , 19.9 , , .375 , , .359 , , .667 , , 2.5 , , 1.8 , , .5 , , .3 , , 5.8 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 26 , , 3 , , 12.1 , , .355 , , .352 , , .833 , , 1.4 , , .9 , , .3 , , .1 , , 3.2

College

, - , style="text-align:left;", 2016–17 , style="text-align:left;", Utah State , 31 , , 18 , , 26.2 , , .450 , , .451 , , .878 , , 3.0 , , 3.2 , , .9 , , .2 , , 9.1 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2017–18 , style="text-align:left;", Utah State , 34 , , 33 , , 35.4 , , .504 , , .464 , , .849 , , 3.3 , , 3.1 , , 1.0 , , .2 , , 16.3 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2018–19 , style="text-align:left;", Utah State , 35 , , 35 , , 35.3 , , .461 , , .376 , , .909 , , 3.9 , , 4.2 , , 1.1 , , .3 , , 20.9 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2019–20 , style="text-align:left;", Utah State , 32 , , 32 , , 35.0 , , .461 , , .410 , , .893 , , 4.1 , , 3.9 , , .9 , , .1 , , 19.7 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 132 , , 118 , , 33.1 , , .470 , , .420 , , .891 , , 3.6 , , 3.6 , , 1.0 , , .2 , , 16.6

References

External links

Utah State Aggies bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Merrill, Sam 1996 births Living people 21st-century American sportsmen American men's basketball players Basketball players from Utah Cleveland Cavaliers players Cleveland Charge players Latter Day Saints from Utah Memphis Grizzlies players Memphis Hustle players Milwaukee Bucks players New Orleans Pelicans draft picks People from Bountiful, Utah Shooting guards Sportspeople from Davis County, Utah Utah State Aggies men's basketball players