Former Utah State Aggies Carving Out Roles With NBA’s Best

SALT LAKE CITY – Five years ago, Neemias Queta and Sam Merrill were on their way to leading the Utah State Aggies into a never-to-be-played 2020 NCAA Tournament field. Today, both have an NBA championship ring and have become relied-upon contributors for the Boston Celtics and Cleveland Cavaliers.

The former USU duo no longer share a locker room, but there’s a decent chance they share the court this spring in the Eastern Conference playoffs. Cleveland and Boston hold the top two seeds in the East.

The Sam Merrill dime to Darius Garland🔥🔥pic.twitter.com/Ai4PrlYHGh https://t.co/qqtzuru2bO

— Across The Cavs (@AcrossCavs) January 12, 2025

A Bountiful, Utah native, Merrill’s title came in his rookie season with the Milwaukee Bucks. After latching on with Memphis briefly, Merrill has become an off-the-bench sharpshooter for the Cavaliers.

Cleveland has marched to a league-best 33-5 record, with Merrill scoring 6.7 points on nearly two threes per game in a career-high 18.7 minutes per night. A dead eye from deep, Merrill’s playmaking has improved to 1.7 assists per game.

The former Aggie has seen his shooting averages drop after breaking out last season. Merrill is shooting 37.9 percent from the field and 34.2 percent on 5.1 attempts per game from deep.

Shout-out to Neemias Queta ☘️

8 points on 4-5 FG in 8 minutes against Nuggets. He actually scored nearly half of Boston's 20 points in the second quarter: pic.twitter.com/b16MpWRbFr

— Tomek Kordylewski (@Timi_093) January 8, 2025

After beginning his NBA career in Sacramento, Queta signed with Boston before the 2023-24 season. After earning an NBA championship with the Celtics while playing a career-high 11.9 minutes last season, Queta’s role with the defending champs has grown.

RELATED: Neemias Queta Signs Multi-Year Deal To Stay With Celtics

The 7’0 backup center averages 5.4 points, 4.2 rebounds, and just under a block per game this season. He has reached double-figure scoring six times, including 12 points, nine rebounds, and four blocks against the Clippers in late November.

Boston is 28-11 and holds the second seed in the Eastern Conference.

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Brian Preece is a sports.ksl.com insider covering Locals in MLB and the Salt Lake Bees. Follow Brian’s Bees and Beehive baseball here.

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