INDEPENDENCE, Ohio — In the opening seconds of the Cavs’ 118-106 win over Milwaukee on Nov. 17, sharpshooter Sam Merrill smashed his right finger while colliding with Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo.

Merrill felt immediate pain. It started traveling down to his hand, causing significant bruising and swelling.

Initially, Merrill wondered if he could continue. At halftime, as the pain worsened, he came out of the locker room and airballed his first warmup shot. It didn’t get much better from there. Eventually, he told Cavs coach Kenny Atkinson he wasn’t sure he could shoot but was willing to try to play anyway.

Merrill finished the game, somehow scoring 20 points on 7 of 10 from the field and 6 of 9 from 3-point range in 28 gutsy minutes. He joked afterward about adrenaline being a “real thing.”

He hasn’t played since.

“He’s frustrated. We’re frustrated. It’s just a slow healing process,” Cavs coach Kenny Atkinson said earlier this week. “Hasn’t gotten worse. Swelling is decreasing. It’s just hard to move forward. He’s frustrated more than anybody that this thing is not healing quicker. There’s nothing structural.”

One week ago, Merrill conducted an individual workout at Cleveland Clinic Courts in which he used his sprained right hand only sparingly. With a protective wrap around the injury, Merrill dribbled a bit, took a few short-range floaters and spun in numerous layups. At other points during what was a left-hand-dominant workout, Merrill used his right as a guide hand while shooting with the left — any attempt beyond the free-throw line.

On Thursday, before the team left for Washington, D.C., Merrill conducted another extensive workout. It was his first time hoisting jumpers with his usual shooting hand in nearly a month.

“A pleasant sight to see,” Atkinson said.

Despite the recent progress, Merrill remains out Friday night. It will be his 11th consecutive absence. He did not travel to the nation’s capital for the game, staying back in Cleveland to continue working with team trainers in hopes of returning to the lineup in the near future. His status for Sunday at home against Charlotte remains unclear as well.

Merrill’s hand injury interrupted what was a tremendous start to the season. On the heels of a four-year contract extension, Merrill is averaging a career-high 13.9 points on 46.6% from the field and 44.4% from 3-point range to go with 2.3 assists and 2.1 rebounds while making eight starts. With him on the floor, the Cavs are four-points-per-100-possessions better than when he is off.

“We’re missing our connectors,” Atkinson explained. “Connectors and the gravity that goes with that. It’s a big thing for your offense. Right now we kind of don’t have that piece. We don’t have another play that fits it. That causes a little bit of an imbalance on what we’re doing and an adjustment in what we’re doing. I don’t think it’s like, ‘Oh, let’s create another Sam.’ It’s like how can we use Nae’Qwan [Tomlin] better? How can we use Jaylon [Tyson] better?

“They’re just different types of players.”