Sam Merrill and this former Utah Jazz player just got traded for each other. Sort of

Former Utah State Aggies star Sam Merrill, now of the NBA’s Cleveland Cavaliers, was involved in an interesting trade on Monday that also included a former Utah Jazz player.

At about 12:15 MDT, the Wisconsin Herd and Cleveland Charge of the NBA G League announced that they had agreed to a trade that will send Merrill’s returning player rights from the Charge to the Herd in exchange for the returning rights to Elijah Hughes and a 2025 G League second-round draft pick.

Here’s what it all means: Players who have played in the G League are free to play elsewhere in the world, although the G League team they leave retains their rights — hence the name “returning player rights” — if they return to the G League.

The 6-foot-4, 205-pound Merrill has had quite the professional career. He was selected by the New Orleans Pelicans with the 60th and final pick of the 2020 NBA draft but was immediately traded to the Milwaukee Bucks.

Merrill spent time as a rookie both with the Bucks and in the G League before being traded to the Memphis Grizzlies in August of 2021. He was cut in January 2022 and then signed with the Sacramento Kings for training camp prior to the 2022-23 season.

He didn’t make the team but entered his name into the 2022 NBA G League draft, where he was the No. 1 overall pick by the Charge. In March 2023, Merrill signed a 10-day contract with the Cleveland Cavaliers, the NBA parent club of the Charge.

Merrill wound up sticking with the Cavs and has become an important piece of what is a very good team, meaning it is very unlikely that he ever returns to the G League.

Last season, Merrill appeared in 61 games for the Cavs and averaged 8 points, two rebounds and 1.8 assists in 17.5 minutes per game. Most notably, he shot 40.4% from behind the 3-point line, a skill that is the main driver in allowing him to stick in the NBA.

As for Hughes, he was selected 21 picks prior to Merrill in the 2020 NBA draft out of Syracuse, also by the Pelicans, before being immediately traded to the Jazz.

After splitting time between the Jazz and their G League team, the Salt Lake City Stars, Hughes was traded to the Portland Trail Blazers alongside Joe Ingles in February of 2022 (the Jazz received Nickeil Alexander-Walker and Juancho Hernangomez in the deal).

In November of 2022, Hughes joined the Herd and has bounced around several clubs since then. In July, he joined Promitheas Patras of the Greek Basketball League.

In essence, the Charge get the rights to Hughes — whom it appears could return to the G League at some point — in exchange for a second-round draft pick, as, again, it is unlikely Merrill will ever return to the G League.