Samuel Hoskins Merrill (born May 15, 1996) is an American professional basketball player for the Cleveland Cavaliers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Nicknamed “Sammy Buckets,” he was drafted with the last pick of the 2020 NBA draft and acquired by the Milwaukee Bucks. He played college basketball at Utah State University (USU).

Quick Facts No. 5 – Cleveland Cavaliers, Position ...

Sam Merrill

Merrill in 2023
No. 5 – Cleveland Cavaliers
Position	Shooting guard
League	NBA
Personal information
Born	(1996-05-15) May 15, 1996 (age 27) Albuquerque, New Mexico, U.S.
Listed height	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
Listed weight	205 lb (93 kg)
Career information
High school	Bountiful (Bountiful, Utah)
College	Utah State (2016–2020)
NBA draft	2020: 2nd round, 60th overall pick
Selected by the New Orleans Pelicans
Playing career	2020–present
Career history
2020–2021	Milwaukee Bucks
2021	→Memphis Hustle
2021–2022	Memphis Grizzlies
2021	→Memphis Hustle
2022–2023	Cleveland Charge
2023–present	Cleveland Cavaliers
Career highlights and awards
NBA champion (2021) AP Honorable Mention All-American (2019) Mountain West Player of the Year (2019) 2× First-team All-Mountain West (2019, 2020) Third-team All-Mountain West (2018) 2× Mountain West tournament MVP (2019, 2020)
Stats  at NBA.com
Stats  at Basketball-Reference.com

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Merrill is the son of John and Jenny Merrill and has an older sister, Molli. He grew up in Bountiful, Utah and attended Bountiful High School. 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 and Salt Lake Tribune. 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 and Princeton but committed to USU.^[1]

Merrill went on a two-year mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to Nicaragua before his freshman year at USU. When he returned, head coach Stew Morrill retired and was replaced by Tim Duryea.^[2] Merrill posted 9.4 points per game as a freshman.^[3]

In his sophomore season, Merrill averaged 16.3 points per game.^[3] He was named Third-team All-Mountain West Conference (MWC).^[2] Merrill married soccer player Kanyan Ward in May 2018.^[3]

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.^[4] Merrill had a career-high 38 points on March 5, 2019, in a 100–96 overtime victory over Colorado State University (CSU).^[3]

In the season opener of his senior year, Merrill had 28 points to help USU defeat Montana State 81–73.^[5] On February 11, versus CSU, Merrill eclipsed the 2,000-point mark for his career and passed Wayne Estes for third on USU’s all-time scoring list.^[6] He finished with 32 points and five assists in a 75–72 win.^[7] At the conclusion of the regular season, Merrill was named First Team All-MWC.^[8] 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 soon after his final game, where he scored 27 points in a 59–56 upset of San Diego State in the tournament final and hit the game-winning three-pointer with 2.5 seconds remaining.^[9]