The rest of this season is vitally important for the Cleveland Cavaliers as a team. They are battling with a number of other good teams in the Eastern Conference for playoff positioning, and where they finish will have a huge impact on how far into the playoffs they can advance.
It’s also important for a number of individual players, too. While the core of stars might be locked up for multiple seasons and all a crucial part of the team’s plans moving forward, other players will be competing for their futures down the stretch. Here are four Cavaliers whose futures in Cleveland will likely be decided in the coming weeks.
No. 1: Sam Merrill is playing for his future with Cavaliers
This one is the starkest, as Sam Merrill is currently signed to a 10-day contract with the team. If he doesn’t perform, in practice and in any game action he sees, he will by default find his future with the team extinguished when his contract runs out.
A deadly shooter, Merrill fits the archetype of a player the Cavs don’t have on the roster, a true movement shooter (Darius Garland would count but has the ball in his hands often). If he can demonstrate that his shot is pure and his defense is survivable, he could find a home as a fringe rotation player not just down the stretch but next year as well.