Former Utah State star guard Sam Merrill signed what is a record-breaking deal for a player with his background. The former 60th overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft signed a four-year, $38 million contract with the Cleveland Cavaliers, which will make Merrill the highest-ever paid player taken with the 60th pick, which is the final spot in the NBA’s two-round draft. The signing was reported by ESPN reporter Shams Charania.
The Aggie legend, who ranks second in all-time scoring in USU program history, has been a staple of the Cavaliers’ rotation for each of the last two seasons. Between this year and last, Merrill has appeared in 132 games, averaging 18.7 minutes per game, 7.5 points, 2.1 rebounds, 1.6 assists and shooting 38.8 percent from three. In this year’s playoffs, he appeared in eight games, making three starts prior to Cleveland’s second-round exit from the postseason.
Merrill’s contract with the Cavaliers, signed in March 2023 as a follow-up to a 10-day contract he signed with the team, ended with the conclusion of the 2024-25 season. On Monday at 4 p.m. MT, Merrill would have been eligible to sign with a different NBA franchise as a free agent. However, Cleveland has now secured the services of Merrill for another four seasons.
According to a May 22 report from Chris Fedor of cleveland.com, Merrill was aiming for a multi-year deal in the range of $6-8 million per year in this free agency cycle. This deal will make him an average of $9.5 million per year.
Re-signing Merrill was no easy thing for the Cavaliers to do as the team is facing a difficult cap situation. Prior to multiple moves this week, Cleveland was set to have as much as $217.8 million in payroll, well beyond the NBA’s salary cap ($154.6) and the luxury tax. In order to avoid exceeding the dreaded “second apron” limit ($207.8), the Cavaliers might have considered moving on from Merrill despite being clearly satisfied with his services. However, the front office has attempted to keep as much of its core team, which earned the number one overall seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs, together for as long as possible.
