Mercy Miller Arrives in Houston Ready to Work This Year

Mercy Miller is getting ready to shine on a bigger stage. The 6-foot-4, 190-pound four-star guard came to Houston because he knew the type of coaching Kelvin Sampson had to offer. He could have waited for others to start calling, but the Cougars stood out from the start.

Miller is ranked as the No. 7 guard in the 2024 class, the No. 7 overall player in the state of California and the No. 52 player nationally according to 247Sports. While he took his talents to Houston to play for Sampson, his development came early with his father, Percy Miller, who was a former NBA player turned entrepreneur.

Sampson saw something in Miller early on, offering him a scholarship when he was a freshman at Minnehaha Academy in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The same school has produced big-name players who went on to play in the NBA, such as Chet Holmgreen (Oklahoma Thunder) and Jalen Suggs (Orlando Magic), who played alongside Miller in 2021. They won a state championship together in 2021, which brought attention to the academy as a whole.

Miller, like his father, better known as “Master P,” never shies away from the spotlight or big moments, especially on the basketball court. He headlines this year’s recruiting class in Houston along with two other four-stars. IMG Academy’s Chase McCarty, who is also a top-100 talent, as well as Oklahoma transfer Milos Uzan.

The trio will be a great addition to the Cougars men’s basketball team, which is a favorite to make the Final Four. The season ahead is similar to the one in the early 1980s, when Houston became a national powerhouse. Sampson’s team will be looking to win a national championship for the program and overcome last season’s Sweet 16 loss to Duke in the NCCA tournament.

Sampson’s ability to maintain a trait that many coaches have abandoned over the years is key. He knows how to build relationships with players by truly being a player’s coach.

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Miller was recruited by Duke, but he wasn’t swayed by any shade of blue in Carolina. Because of his loyalty to Sampson, Miller will play this season with the Cougars. But it wasn’t just about having one of the best coaches in the game. He fell in love with the Houston community as a place where he could continue his career and possibly have a chance to be like his father in the NBA. Off the court, he’ll be looking to climb the NIL rankings. He already signed a $1.4 million NIL contract with Greek yogurt company Sweetkiwi this year, which would put him in the top 10 college earners.

Miller’s love, passion and thirst for basketball is like a breath of fresh air. He loves to compete and does so at a high level playing against athletes three years older than him. However, he has never let himself get carried away by the moment or by the fact that his opponents are not too strong for him. For him, he has always loved basketball.

People often talk about Miller’s ability to score big points. It’s part of his game. He set the Sherman Oaks Notre Dame scoring record with 68 points. It’s almost like a switch was flipped in his mind, with shades of how the late Kobe Bryant was able to score on demand. When Miller’s number is called, he plays hard on both ends of the floor. He has good shooting touch from all three levels of the floor and has the ability to drive to the basket and score.

Miller wants to help the Cougars be competitive next year. His goals include winning the Big 12 title and winning the Naismith Defensive Player of the Year award.