Facing his former team, Sam Merrill torched the Milwaukee Bucks for 20 points on 6-for-9 shooting from distance in Monday's 118-106. Not only was it a lethally efficient revenge game, it also supplied a template for the Bucks' own sniper, AJ Green, to take the next step in his development.
Namely, Green must hunt shots more aggressively while avoiding the foul trouble that often limits his minutes, an obvious obstacle to achieving the first goal. Executing Merrill's example would put Green on track for the breakout year many were hoping for.
Green must take Merrill's example as a challenge
Although outperformed by his Cavaliers counterpart, Green had a decent game himself, making four threes in eight tries. He is already having a solid year - 10.9 points per game on 47.4 percent from distance. That puts Green sixth in the NBA in 3-point percentage while averaging more attempts than anyone else in the top 12.
That volume can actually increase. At a mere 44.4 percent success rate, Merrill isn't quite at Green's level of precision but he's also getting up over eight attempts per game. It adds up to a scoring average of 13.9 points per game in an almost identical role.
While both marksmen are having career years, Merrill has taken the bigger jump thus far due in part to a 60 percent increase in 3-point attempts. By comparison, Green is only launching 30 percent more often than last season. Each player has seen a similar boost in playing time, with Green averaging 28 minutes per night to Merrill's 26.
Foul trouble is one reason his minutes aren't higher. Lately, Green is doing better in that department. He managed to stay on the court for a season-high 40 minutes against Cleveland, picking up three personals in the process.
As a fellow undersized wing, Merrill can also get bogged down in foul trouble at times, though that wasn't a problem against the Bucks. He and Green have nearly equivalent per-minute foul rates this season. Thus far, though, it's been a more consistent issue for Green, as he has picked up three-plus fouls in 12 of 15 games.
Cutting down on the fouls will help, but the real takeaway for Green is that he simply needs to seek out open looks more often. For a Bucks offense missing Giannis Antetokounmpo for most of the night, Green's eight 3-point attempts in 40 minutes weren't enough. Merrill, on the other hand, got up nine attempts in 28 minutes.
This isn't to say the Bucks want Green hoisting blindly - of course not. Several of his attempts later in Monday's game were not great shots, coming out of rhythm and closely contested. Without Giannis' gravity and creation, good looks will naturally be harder to come by.
Most nights, however, they are there to be had. Green can do his part by looking to shoot at will. If the Bucks aren't giving him a full license, they need to be. Even as a catch-and-shoot machine, he can manufacture some of his own looks with a dribble left or right, deploying shot fakes in close quarters, doing anything to create space. When he has even a sliver, he is lethal.
From a schematic standpoint, the Bucks could also look to run more screens aimed at getting Green open. However he does it, copying Merrill's lesson in concentrated volume will Green's anticipated leap year well underway.