If the Cleveland Cavaliers have to pick between Sam Merrill and Ty Jerome, they must choose to re-sign Sam Merrill -- even if it means saying goodbye to Ty Jerome.
We discussed yesterday the difficult decision that the NBA's draconian second tax apron rules are forcing on the Cavaliers. Despite not even being in the luxury tax this past season, they are poised to leap over the second tax apron next season -- largely because Evan Mobley not only is starting a new max extension, but also because he won Defensive Player of the Year and increased his salary.
That means painful decisions on who to bring back. Both Ty Jerome and Sam Merrill are unrestricted free agents this summer and due for significant pay increases. Jerome played at pennies above the minimum this past season, while Merrill was literally at the minimum amount. Combined, they made just $4.6 million.
Ty Jerome is poised to blow through that number. He had the best season of his career, putting up a hyper-efficient 22.7 points per 36 minutes and averaging 2.6 assists for every turnover. Teams desperately need shot creators, and Jerome was exceptional at creating shots for himself and others -- at least, until he and the Cavaliers fell apart in the second round of the playoffs.
It's possible that Jerome merely had a bad series, but there have to be concerns for a team like Cleveland about Jerome's efficacy against the toughest of playoff opponents. For a team expecting to be in the title race for the next few seasons, making a serious investment in Jerome -- one that will hamstring the team's ability to make changes to the roster and force them to bid goodbye to other key players -- is likely the wrong move.
Instead, the Cavaliers should bring back Sam Merrill
Sam Vecenie is an NBA and NBA Draft analyst who follows the league very closely, and he recently made a case for keeping Sam Merrill over Ty Jerome. It's not surprising to hear Vecenie locked into the value of Merrill, as he has believed in him more than most for some time. He ranked him 36th ahead of the 2020 NBA Draft (he would ultimately go 60th) and has long praised the impact of his movement shooting.
That impact has been borne out over the past two seasons, as Merrill has clawed his way into a full rotation role. He has been great, not elite, in terms of shooting accuracy, but his ability and willingness to get up 3-point shots out of a dead sprint or from eight feet behind the line stretches opposing defenses and opens up opportunities elsewhere on the court for his teammates.
Where Merrill truly deserves credit is in his defensive improvement. Most movement shooters are defensive targets; the players who thrive in that role are usually stuck in the mud trying to play defense. Not so with Merrill, who stepped up his game this season and became an average-level defensive wing. That is a huge boon for someone who has the offensive gravity that he does.
Jerome will almost certainly be more expensive than Merrill, and his skill set is more replaceable on this team. The number of knockdown movement shooters who bring real defensive value is extremely limited around the league, and the Cavaliers have found their way to two of them in Max Strus and Sam Merrill. Having such players is key to their offensive success, and Cleveland needs to hold on to them at all costs.
In an ideal world, the Cavaliers would bring back both Jerome and Merrill and make a run at the title next season. The realities of the second tax apron era of the NBA will almost certainly prevent that. If forced to a decision, therefore, the answer is clear for the Cleveland Cavaliers:
Bring back Sam Merrill. No matter what.