Donovan Mitchell, Lauri Markkanen, Collin Sexton and everybody else involved in the 2022 Cleveland Cavaliers-Utah Jazz trade won’t be the only ones with a Beehive State connection in the teams’ upcoming game.
Sharpshooter Sam Merrill, who’s coming off his best NBA game, wasn’t part of that trade, but his ties to Utah are as strong as they get. The Cavaliers’ backup guard grew up in Bountiful, Utah, and played collegiately at Utah State.
Considering his Utah background his career-high scoring effort in Monday’s overtime win against the Houston Rockets, Merrill will be among those under the spotlight in Wednesday’s game against the Jazz in Cleveland.
Merrill scored 19 points on 6-of-11 shooting with five 3-pointers in the 135-130 victory vs. Houston. That included five points in the overtime session.
After his all-state high school career at Bountiful High — a suburb 10 miles north of Salt Lake City — Merrill earned numerous All-Mountain West Conference honors and was named an honorable mention All-American after leading the Aggies to two MWC championships.
Mitchell, who spent the first five NBA seasons in Utah from 2017-22, has been impressed with Merrill since then.
The Jazz have been lifted recently by Sexton, a key piece in that 2022 blockbuster deal. He has averaged 25.6 points and 4.0 assists in the past five games.
Sexton and Talen Horton-Tucker each scored 27 points with six assists and three rebounds in Utah’s 125-108 win over the Brooklyn Nets on Monday.
Sexton didn’t have the greatest shooting night, going 6-for-17, but he hit 12 of 13 free throws and was instrumental in the victory. The Jazz are playing without starting guards Jordan Clarkson and Keyonte George but have won three of four in part thanks to Sexton’s play.
