Sam Merrill just went completely bonkers for the Cleveland Cavaliers in the first half against the Washington Wizards, dropping 26 points on a superhuman 7-for-7 from 3-point range in 14 minutes of action.
Merrill's value as a floor-spacer for the Cavs was already well-known by fans of the team, but this explosion of shooting prowess just erased any doubts that Cleveland must keep Merrill in its long-term plans.
Sam Merrill is one of the best contracts in the NBA
Merrill's contract is beginning to look like one of the best bargains in the NBA. He's making $8.5 million this year and less than $30 million combined over the next three seasons. That's a steal for a player who shoots the ball the way Merrill does and isn't a complete liability defensively.
You'd be getting carried away to call Merrill a two-way wing, nor is he the defender that Max Strus is, but still, he's 6-foot-4 and a better athlete than people think he is.
Speaking of Strus, he and Merrill are the same age (29), but Strus is making a lot more money. The Cavaliers already had reasons to trade Strus, and Merrill's continuing improvement only makes that decision more obvious for Koby Altman.
In a discussion of Cleveland's six most valuable players (say, for expansion draft purposes), Merrill is on the list along with Donovan Mitchell, Evan Mobley, James Harden, Jaylon Tyson, and Jarrett Allen.
Tyson and Merrill's marksmanship from distance more than makes up for the loss of Strus in a theoretical offseason trade. Both of these guys have shown that they are going to feast on the attention that Harden and Mitchell demand by spotting up and knocking down open threes regularly.
Merrill has flown under the radar for his entire career, but he's about to get a lot more eyes on him in the Harden era, especially if he keeps shooting the ball anything like he did in the first half against Washington on Wednesday night.
If the Cavaliers are indeed in the middle of a championship window, Merrill might very well find himself in an NBA Finals this season or next, with the potential to hit humongous, franchise-altering shots in the biggest games possible.
Every GM in the NBA is jealous that the Cavs have Merrill on such a cheap deal. He's a winning player and a perfect complement on the wing if you have a star guard who demands a ton of gravity. Cleveland happens to have two of those now.