Cleveland Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell apologized to his teammate Sam Merrill after failing to win the NBA’s 2024 3-Point Contest.
I have failed you 😢 @smerrill05
— Donovan Mitchell (@spidadmitchell) February 18, 2024
Mitchell was eliminated in the first round after he registered just 21 points. The three players that advanced to the final round (after a four-way tie was broken) were Trae Young, Karl-Anthony Towns and Damian Lillard.
Lillard ended up winning the contest by hitting his final shot in the last round, giving him his second straight title in the competition.
Mitchell paid tribute to Merrill – his sharpshooting teammate – during the contest, wearing a jersey that said “Money Merrill” on it.
Donovan Mitchell is wearing a Sam Merrill jersey during the 3-point contest 👀 pic.twitter.com/f7sW8Ykgk1
— The Sporting News (@sportingnews) February 18, 2024
It’s cool of Mitchell to give his teammate some love during the league’s All-Star festivities, especially since Merrill has shown this season that he can shoot the ball at a high rate.
The Cavs sharpshooter has played in 37 games for Cleveland in the current campaign, shooting an impressive 44.2 percent from beyond the arc. A second-round pick in the 2020 NBA Draft, Merrill seems to have found a home in Cleveland after playing with the Milwaukee Bucks and Memphis Grizzlies in the first two seasons of his career.
Merrill appeared in five games for the Cavs last season, but he’s seen his role expand in the 2023-24 campaign.
Mitchell’s decision to represent Merrill with his jersey in the 2024 3-Point Contest shows not only that he is a great teammate, but that Mitchell and the Cavs have some great chemistry going right now.
The team has climbed to the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference standings, and Mitchell was named to the All-Star Game this season to represent the franchise. He will participate in the Eastern Conference versus Western Conference matchup on Sunday night.
While Mitchell was unable to come through for Merrill and the Cavs in the 2024 3-Point Contest, he may get another chance to do so next season if he keeps shooting the ball well. Or, it’s possible that Merrill will find himself in the competition as well.
This season, Mitchell is averaging 28.4 points, 5.4 rebounds and 6.3 assists per game while shooting 47.3 percent from the field and 36.1 percent from beyond the arc.
