{"id":295309,"date":"2025-11-19T17:53:09","date_gmt":"2025-11-19T17:53:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/295309\/"},"modified":"2025-11-19T17:53:09","modified_gmt":"2025-11-19T17:53:09","slug":"how-sam-merrill-became-essential-to-the-cavs-and-why-it-started-35000-feet-in-the-air","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/295309\/","title":{"rendered":"How Sam Merrill became essential to the Cavs \u2014 and why it started 35,000 feet in the air"},"content":{"rendered":"

CLEVELAND, Ohio \u2014 Somewhere over middle America, long after the cameras shut off and the box scores froze, Donovan Mitchell and Sam Merrill started to build<\/a> something the Cavs<\/a> are now benefiting from.<\/p>\n

On nearly every road trip since they became teammates in 2023, the two sit side-by-side. Two screens glow. On Mitchell\u2019s, the game from a few hours earlier plays in full, rewound and replayed like a scene study. On Merrill\u2019s, a TV show flickers, but he\u2019s actually watching Mitchell\u2019s screen instead. Leaning closer, pausing possessions, pointing out the subtleties.<\/p>\n

Mitchell is a film junkie. And from their very first flight, Merrill was one of the rare people he trusted to give unvarnished truth.<\/p>\n

You should\u2019ve passed that. That wasn\u2019t the right read. That was a bad shot.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen Sam first got here, he wasn\u2019t really playing much,\u201d Mitchell said. \u201cSo it started out with me asking him what he sees and being honest with me. It\u2019s easy when you\u2019re a guy like myself to kind of be told you\u2019re doing everything amazing. But he\u2019s a guy who I\u2019ve known since before I got to the NBA … He\u2019s always honest, and I love that about him. That\u2019s kind of where our relationship has grown.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"ClevelandAn unlikely pairing: a multi-time All-Star and the 60th pick in 2020, later selected No. 1 in the 2022 G League draft. All it took was one season with the Charge before the Cavs realized Merrill belonged in the NBA. And then those flights began. Through honesty and shared curiosity, their chemistry took root.John Kuntz, cleveland.com<\/p>\n

An unlikely pairing: a multi-time All-Star and the 60th pick in 2020, later selected No. 1 in the 2022 G League draft. All it took was one season with the Charge before the Cavs realized Merrill belonged in the NBA. <\/p>\n

And then those flights began. Through honesty and shared curiosity, their chemistry took root.<\/p>\n

In Monday\u2019s 118\u2013106 win over Milwaukee, that bond manifested as a perfect balance. Mitchell detonated early with 25 first-half points., finishing with 37. Merrill answered with 17 of his 20 after halftime. The Bucks defenders\u2019 heads spun trying to keep up. <\/p>\n

And since stepping into the starting lineup with Darius Garland sidelined to start the season, Merrill\u2019s made the most of the added opportunities. Among two-man groups with at least 150 minutes together, Mitchell and Merrill own the fourth-best net rating (11.1) through 15 games.<\/p>\n

BETTING: Cavs moneyline<\/a> is listed at +105 on Caesars<\/a> for Wednesday\u2019s matchup versus the Rockets. Our comprehensive Caesars Sportsbook review<\/a> provides a guide on how to use their site.<\/p>\n

It feels like only the beginning of what Merrill can tap into.<\/a> The flights will continue. The film will continue. The movement will never stop.<\/p>\n

But Merrill\u2019s rise, along with his confidence and his voice, didn\u2019t start with one hot night. Or a contract. Or even Cleveland\u2019s decision to commit to him this summer.<\/p>\n

It began with him learning to trust in himself in a way he hadn\u2019t before.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think my mindset is better this year,\u201d Merrill admitted. \u201cThe ball didn\u2019t go in last week. I still felt like I shot it well. And there were times last year where I\u2019d have a tough stretch and would maybe let it get to my head a little bit. <\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m just trying to keep that positive mindset, whether shots are going in or not.\u201d<\/p>\n

The night played through pain<\/p>\n

The first quarter of Monday night\u2019s game offered a quiet window into who Merrill is becoming.<\/p>\n

On Milwaukee\u2019s opening possession, Giannis Antetokounmpo barreled downhill. Merrill \u2014 giving up nearly 40 pounds \u2014 stepped in to slow him. His right shooting hand jammed awkwardly on the play, a surge of pain shooting through his fingers before the team later called it a sprain.<\/p>\n

Before the official diagnosis, he walked toward the locker room with Cavs trainer Steve Spiro, with Kenny Atkinson and Merrill unsure whether the flamethrower would return at all, never mind whether he\u2019d be able to shoot.<\/p>\n

Cleveland was again without Garland (toe). Movement was scarce. Shooting was scarce. The Cavs needed Merrill, even if he wasn\u2019t lighting it up from deep.<\/p>\n

Instead of restricting himself to movement and serving as a decoy, he hit six 3s, dropping 12 points in the fourth quarter alone. He torched Milwaukee\u2019s zone so thoroughly that Doc Rivers scrapped it within minutes.<\/p>\n

It was the kind of performance Cleveland has come to expect. Motion that warps defenses, shooting that alters geometry, tempo that opens driving lanes, especially for Mitchell.<\/p>\n

But it was the mindset behind it that mattered. He wasn\u2019t rushing into playmaking from fear of mistakes. He was hunting his shot, attacking closeouts, trusting his work.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s starting to get downhill a little bit because they\u2019re chasing him all the time,\u201d Atkinson, who compared Merrill to shooters like Kyle Korver, said. \u201cHe\u2019s starting to get a little bit of a paint game, which I\u2019m thrilled about. … Those are kind of playoff plays to me. The shooting\u2019s great, but I love [that] he\u2019s kind of expanding his game.<\/p>\n

\"SamLast year, when Sam Merrill put the ball on the floor, he was thinking about survival, now he’s taking advantage of what the defense gives him, whether with for himself or creating for others. No longer having a one-track mind. Joshua Gunter, cleveland.comLearning to live with imperfection<\/p>\n

Merrill\u2019s recent growth didn\u2019t come from a new shooting drill or a tweak in mechanics. He had to rewire his entire internal approach.<\/p>\n

Last year, when he put the ball on the floor, he was thinking about survival, not success.<\/p>\n

\u201cI would get run off the line or drive a closeout, and all I could think was pass like, where am I gonna get to the next pass?\u201d Merrill recalled. \u201c… Now I feel like when I drive, I\u2019m looking for my shot. Understanding that it\u2019s not always gonna be there. And a lot of times it\u2019s just [making] the right play. <\/p>\n

\u201cI feel like I can continue to grow in that area, but I\u2019m fairly happy with the way I\u2019ve started as far as that goes.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"SamWhen Sam Merrill arrived to Cleveland, his role was clearly defined: make shots or sit the bench. That created a mental block that Merrill had to overcome to tap into his full potential under Kenny Atkinson.Getty Images<\/p>\n

That psychological shift can take years, especially for specialists whose playing time gets tied to makes and misses on a playoff-caliber roster.<\/p>\n

And Merrill is his own harshest critic. He had to learn how to separate individual nights from long-term belief.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think there\u2019s a difference between micro-confidence and macro-confidence,\u201d Merrill said. \u201cLast year, even throughout the summer, like, my shot just didn\u2019t feel as good as I wanted it to. … This summer, I worked hard on getting my base back, getting consistent arc back, getting a little stronger, a little better shape, and that\u2019s allowed me to just feel good about where I\u2019m at and understand that bad nights are going to come. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a long season, you\u2019re going to have bad stretches. Everyone does. But keeping that macro-confidence at the forefront.\u201d<\/p>\n

That\u2019s the foundation of his leap.<\/p>\n

Bad week? He doesn\u2019t spiral. One-for-eight? He doesn\u2019t hide. Defenses chase him? He keeps moving.<\/p>\n

He learned the 82-game season is jagged, not linear. That understanding allowed him to tap into his full potential.<\/p>\n

The freedom of stability<\/p>\n

Even if Merrill won\u2019t say it, Mitchell will: the contract mattered.<\/p>\n

In June, Cleveland committed four years and $38 million to him. It wasn\u2019t just a number. It was validation. Security.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t know if he feels this way, but I mean, whatever [contract] he got definitely helps,\u201d Mitchell said for Merrill. \u201cHe\u2019s being rewarded on what you do. And I\u2019m not saying that to be funny. I\u2019m serious. Being rewarded by being a \u2018maniac in the head,\u2019 it\u2019s a pressure reliever. It\u2019s real life.\u201d<\/p>\n

The contract allowed Merrill to stop auditioning and start expanding.<\/p>\n

It freed him to explore. To remember he once ran offenses at Utah State and could handle, probe and manipulate.<\/a><\/p>\n

It helped his voice grow too.<\/p>\n

\"SamSam Merrill sees the game with clarity. He communicates it without fear. He sits next to the franchise star and tells him the truth, and that makes his word hold weight in meetings surrounding the entire group.John Kuntz, cleveland.comA bond that continues to build<\/p>\n

Mitchell and Merrill\u2019s relationship is quietly one of the most important dynamics in Cleveland\u2019s locker room. What began as mutual respect \u2014 two guys who once played pickup against each other in Utah \u2014 became trust in one another. Honesty. Daily film sessions. A shared language for how basketball should feel.<\/p>\n

This is where Merrill\u2019s voice matters. Not just to Mitchell, but to Cleveland\u2019s ecosystem.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s a guy that I can lean on and we can lean on each other to be honest, and then have those dialogues and you see how it\u2019s helping everybody,\u201d Mitchell said. \u201cWe\u2019re looking at how can we help Evan? How can we help [De\u2019Andre Hunter], [Jarrett Allen]. … Just different conversations. Those are the things you want to have. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s great to have that level of accountability from your peers and a guy that you\u2019re going to war with every night.\u201d<\/p>\n

And his voice comes with a rare perspective. <\/p>\n

Merrill is the only player on the roster who has already lived inside a championship locker room. Back in Milwaukee, as a rookie in 2021, Merrill was absorbing everything quietly from the end of the bench. He wasn\u2019t even part of the regular rotation. But he was there. He saw the daily habits, the conversations behind closed doors, the tension, the precision, the tiny winning behaviors that separate good teams from the ones that reach June.<\/p>\n

Now he and Mitchell are trying to build their own version of that standard in Cleveland. And that level of accountability is crucial.<\/p>\n

Merrill sees the game with clarity. He communicates it without fear. He sits next to the franchise star and tells him the truth, and that makes his word hold weight in meetings surrounding the entire group.<\/p>\n

His presence is now part of the Cavs\u2019 necessary scheme to compete for a title.<\/p>\n

Merrill\u2019s performance against the Bucks was only a microcosm of how far he\u2019s come. The hours in the gym. The film sessions at 35,000 feet. The belief built possession by possession.<\/p>\n

Stability didn\u2019t just calm Merrill. It unlocked him. It opened the door. Now he\u2019s walking through it with the full confidence of someone who finally understands his place in the league \u2014 and his importance to a Cavs team chasing something they\u2019ve come to believe he\u2019s essential to reaching.<\/p>\n

If you purchase a product or register for an account through a link on our site, we may receive compensation. By using this site, you consent to our User Agreement<\/a> and agree that your clicks, interactions, and personal information may be collected, recorded, and\/or stored by us and social media and other third-party partners in accordance with our Privacy Policy.<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"CLEVELAND, Ohio \u2014 Somewhere over middle America, long after the cameras shut off and the box scores froze,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":295310,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[574],"tags":[64,63,726,95679,169425,85],"class_list":["post-295309","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-basketball","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-basketball","tag-cleveland-cavaliers-2024-2025","tag-phoenix-suns-2024-2025","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/295309","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=295309"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/295309\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/295310"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=295309"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=295309"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=295309"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}