Sam Merrill moving up NBA mock draft boards
Back when the initial draft profile for Sam Merrill was published on this site, the former Utah State star was hardly visible on the mock draft scene. Even big boards that went 100 players deep were bearish on the small-school guard.
Yet, in the time since the launch of the initial profile, Merrill has moved well into the radar of some of the most prominent mock draft outlets. The most optimistic projection comes from Sam Vecenie of The Athletic, who has been a vocal proponent of Merrill for some time. Vecenie’s mock draft 7.0 from last week predicts the Boston Celtics using the 47th overall pick in the draft on Merrill.
“He’s an absolutely elite level shooter who has an immediately translatable NBA skill because he can do it off of movement, off the catch, or off the bounce,” Vecenie wrote. “He’s another player who has a case as the best shooter in the draft.”
Had two great guests on the podcast this week, including @RobDauster and @MichaelVPina breaking down the draft and NBA. Then, had two awesome interviews w/ Sam Merrill and Cassius Winston.
Subscribe to podcast here: https://t.co/D0Pgub3dRN
Or at Spotify: https://t.co/ii7xn2wxsm
— Sam Vecenie (@Sam_Vecenie) July 26, 2020
Other outlets that currently include Merrill among the 60 players to be drafted are Tankathon (55th), Sports Illustrated (57th) and Rookie Wire (57th). The Brooklyn Nets own the 55th pick where Tankathon has Merrill going, while the Los Angeles Clippers own the 57th pick where both SI.com and Rookie Wire believe Merrill will wind up landing.
ESPN’s Top 100 list slots Merrill just outside draft range as the 61st overall player. Two other mock draft sites, NBA Scouting Live (65th), NBA Draft Room (72nd) have him a bit further out on the fringe while NBADraft.net puts Merrill well outside as the 100th-best prospect on its big board.
Alongside the recognition from media outlets, the NBA itself displayed its interest in the former Aggie by including Merrill among 105 players worldwide to be invited to the 2020 NBA Draft Combine. Typically held in late May in Chicago, the coronavirus outbreak postponed the event and has yet to be given a solid date. Had the virus not thrown out the regular flow of the NBA, the combine would have taken place two days after the draft lottery, the lottery now having been rescheduled to August 20.
ESPN draft analyst, Jonathan Givony, who first made the 105-man list public, noted in a Twitter thread that the combine usually doesn’t invited more than around 70 players, usually picking between 60-70. According to Givony, the current list could be “whittled down to 70 if needed by teams.” Should Merrill withstand this theoretical cut-down, it could cement his position as a late second-round pick, especially with a good showing at the combine to calm scouts concerns about his athleticism.
Great chat with Utah State 6-5 guard Sam Merrill today during another ESPN Film Session. Merrill, who looked like a smaller Luka Doncic of the Mountain West for stretches this year, was one of the most efficient guards in the country. Shoots it deep, excellent PnR passer, tough. pic.twitter.com/9qr14uAHjA
— Mike Schmitz (@Mike_Schmitz) June 5, 2020
@thejwalk67
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