Eating chicken and waffles at Lovi’s restaurant in Calabasas with prep sensation Mercy Miller. The 2024 four-star shooting guard wears a light blue shirt with his dad on it that is pretty fly. His respected and well known father Percy (Master P) is donning fatigue green sweats and a black and white shirt that reads, We have to get everyone winning.
I was just thinking after we got done eating that these guys are a tandem of the most affable and hard working father/son duo I’ve ever known. 100.
From my many conversations with them I’ve found that both are humble and the exact opposite of entitled. Percy’s words ring true in my ear as I repeat them to the basketball gods, “Mercy and [his older brother Hercy] put in the work.”
As a writer I’ve waited 10 years to find a chosen and worthy one to assign a title so blessed and fitting to a youngster that epitomizes what is true about the hoop game. He’s About That Life is like Spike Lee’s He Got Game to me, E-Woods.
Personality wise Mercy is a peppy and cheerful guy, totally engaging in our convo like a grown articulate man for the insightful and meaningful concepts he conveys. You’d swear this dude is that swaggy old soul. He’s like a 25 year old in his approach to wanting to be the best that ever played the game. He knows he doesn’t need to wear Supreme because intrinsically he’s the hotness to himself and others no matter what he chooses to wear.
I remember seeing Josh Christopher at age 5 and saying to his big brother Pat, “Bro P, I’m going to write about your lil brothers and blow up Josh when he hits prep. There’s an aura around him that bleeds out of his soul like an indigo child.”
I felt this same way when I did a story on Mercy’s older brother Romeo back in 2004 in junior high. I remember telling Romeo, “You will lead your little bros to greatness because you’re on that right path.”
Romeo played at USC and was talented at many things. He’s been a successful Hollywood actor for example. Romeo and his dad deserve much credit for installing great morals and a. completely locked in mentality to push the younger hoop playing brothers to new heights as they propel the family name in their own paths they choose to blaze in life!
We laughed as we ate, speaking freely and chopping it up like good friends that trust each other’s opinions, Mercy, Percy and myself together. We were reminiscing at lunch about our beloved Frank DeRozan, DeMar’s dad who told me so often he appreciated Percy and each other’s families getting together on so many occasions.
I’ve never looked a man in his eyes and seen them so dedicated to raising his kids right as Percy has in his glint gaze that shows he seeks it all in his time on earth. Percy told me, “Adversity is that one thing that helps get us going into greatness mode.”
Percy’s words ring true, “MJ got cut from his high school team; we have to be challenged or lose before we succeed even bigger.”
What the reader has to know first and foremost about Mercy Miller is that he is that one great kid who is about protecting his family name and putting good use to the wisdom passed down to him thus far in life.
He is a child of God in his service to others. He isn’t just this 6-4 long talented guard who began his prep career at Minneapolis Minnehaha Academy. His success started way before people started to notice him combining with the number one player in the country Chet Holmgren at that school.
It didn’t even start in junior high where he won multiple AAU National Championships with his Nightrydas AAU squad. Mercy was proud to remind me of all these things in our many convos and lunches together.
You see his eyes light up when detailing all the fun times, blood, sweat, and tears to achieve those things but he is resolute to concede it all started growing up with the hoop in the family’s front yard. He will tell you just like his dad does, “Family first, along with God and education. Always and forever in that order.”
Let’s hear Mercy detail his dreams that hold fast in his soul. He may be a young kid, dude is way beyond his years in wisdom pouring out of him like a fountain, “I give all the glory to God because it is He who works through me. When I was young I listened to my dad teach the importance of family and serving the Lord.
“My dad means so much to me, along with my older siblings and other mentors in my life who pushed and built in me this mentality. All those good influences spring out of me. It all comes down to achieving your goals through hard work, and then more hard work combined with education and faith.
“My mom means so much as well. I love her so much too because she’s always been there for me. She has always given her heart to us all to feel loved and raised right. God is good, He was looking out for me as I started playing out in the front of our house on the family hoop.
“I need to give Him his due credit, as He pushed me to battle my siblings and dad to sharpen my skill to play this game the right way. I constantly remind myself that all good things come through Him and serving the Lord and our fellow human beings. That’s why I embrace learning the skills it takes to get better and better toward my NBA goal I hold so dear.
“I know the Lord walks with me and powers my intent and we all exist for each other in this time on earth together. It’s a big deal to build each other up. I didn’t have fear when I stepped onto the family court as a young kid to accept the challenge of playing up vs. everybody.
“Basketball is the family sport, and you can’t come half stepping into the game and I would not be denied. I looked up to my big brothers Hercy and Romeo for how they played and carried themselves. I knew if I kept a single track mind I could go beyond anything I thought I was capable of and would make everyone proud.
“I am proud to accomplish goals for our JL3 AAU team and our Notre Dame High team, all my prep teams I’ve been on really. All the confidence I have now was cemented back then. I knew my work ethic had to be top notch because people see that I come from a well known family and I would be judged hard for how I conduct myself. I embrace that challenge and will always bring respect to my family name as I blaze my own path.
“All these skills in me are lit afire with my excitement to play each day. Basketball means so much to me, it will never get old to me. I will never take for granted the game and my family’s advice to stay humble as I strive to do big things in this world.
“I have a lot of appreciation to the name I was given. It is a call to action for me to show mercy, to have people tell me, ‘Lord have mercy that kid can play and do anything he puts his mind to at an elite level.’ Mercy is at the core of my existence and reminds me to do good things in life each day in the name of mercy.
“I have fun with my name and the concept but I also take it seriously by being inspired by the concept of mercy, as I feel empowered by those 5 letters to live out my name each day. Create mercy and give it to others. It all started with my name I was blessed to have, and I try to live out its concept on our earth.”
Now do you see? Mercy is as different as different will ever be. He’ll hit you upside your head for how he feels about the game of basketball and life. To me he’s got a pro’s mentality already with his 7 days a week regiment. 5-6 hours a day with incredible trainers in the lab doing insane workouts. No days off is his mantra.
You only see hoop photos on his IG page, basketball bleeds through his veins and soul to be sure. Mercy as a player is athletic but there are a couple guys in his class that can jump higher and dunk harder. However, his sense of self and his mindset is in a class of its own.
It’s funny how other talent evaluators besides myself look for those purely athletic qualities to rank a kid as a prospect over what Mercy has the most of, which is poise and an undying hunger to get better to go along with his skill and confidence.
Why I don’t value flesh and flash is because I see kids that are already displaying an adult mentality and regiment that will later leave other prospects in the dust. Me, your humble writer of 20 years has written 668 stories, seen untold amount of players. I’m also a teacher the last 24 years at the elementary grade level.
That’s what gives me an edge to predict an uber special player I so often project that will go to the NBA. I see their humanness first, also their attitude and inner circle. Then I follow the ones with the right mentality as they go on to have phenom careers and that is what I live to track in the prep basketball world.
Players let their guard down around me and act real, that’s where I see the great ones that in French you say, je ne sais quoi, that certain thing. That’s the way Mercy started as a freshman in Minnesota. He displayed so much poise along with shooting ability.
He’s beyond just about anybody in his class in his ability to display a fluid offensive game. He has a bag so deep you’d think he’s like a Harry Houdini level magician’s bag that escapes the defense.
The precision of his jumper in games like he showed not too long ago in the Pangos Showcase in Las Vegas is what others are buzzing about right now. He had multiple 34 point performances even while playing completely unselfish.
Yes, Mercy has the moves that the most elite kids have but he also has what others don’t have, what I like to call the “Muhammad Ali factor.” It’s swag to feel like the champ Ali told himself as a youngster, “I knew I was the greatest before I even was.”
You will never hear Mercy pumping himself up or being cocky. But he accepts whatever gas you put on him like he’s a tanker of petroleum chugging down the road.
So when someone asks him if he feels he will make the NBA, or if he hears his loving father saying of him, “I know NBA GMs will love the attributes my son will have to offer after college,” Mercy takes those words as a challenge to live up to without blinking an eye.
So rare when I see kids do this, embrace that level of expectation that they you will make the NBA. Mercy? Just a cool cat with this insanely skilled and unselfish game that just floats around the court like he’s on skates.
He likes Ali because he knows when to rope-a-dope the comp, as he stops to sting the defense like a bee at just the right time in game. He’s not trying to dunk on people and hoot and holla to get claps from the crowd.
He’s more than that, his game is subtly sublime and more than just raw expression that others put up trying to show they got muscles. M is poetry in motion with his crafty layups, an unrelenting machine of efficient impeccable jumpers that ooze with separation from his opponent at just the right time.
He is consumed with passing it to others and setting them up to score. M is maybe the most unselfish player and person I’ve met and it comes natural to him. Where does that so elusive quality spring from? I feel it’s been passed down to him since birth, that’s he fated to protect his family’s name at all times and make it to an NBA career, as his father fell just short in his prime.
Fate is a funny thing, some say everything has been decided infinitely countless eons ago, yet Mercy will grab fate by the throat and bend it to his will. He looks like a young man who would be king of his destiny by the way he goes about life.
Percy made sure to remind me the time he took Mercy into the gym to shoot 3,500 shots. That’s kind of crazy but it was a test to see if his kid would give up, stop at a point and just fall down, because even 500 shots is a lot.
Mercy says his arms gave out at 1,500 shots and he was just going on instinct, trying not to fall over. He would make only a single shot after 2,000 were put up, but he would not deny what his dad asked of him. “I got more pride than that, I will do anything to get this dream realized. The impossible is nothing.”
That last comment reminded me of the mantra of our friend Gilbert Arenas, and being a pro like GA is what I foresee for Mercy.
Percy said about that crazy hard and long shooting session, “If you really love your kids you don’t sugar coat anything. You design and find ways for them to be challenged to overcome the toughness that is life. I was presented with many challenges growing up.
“New Orleans and its poor and rough areas are proving grounds. So I try to create proving grounds or situations for my kids to show their mettle. I’m proud Mercy didn’t give up that day. He showed me something, and himself too.”
Mercy? More than any other kid I’ve ever spoken on, including D-DeRozan, B-Jennings, and Skyy Clark, I see clearly that if you stand in his way, that most unique Kobe death stare comes out for anything in his way to be overcome.
I might sound intense, but just hear the most masterful of advisors remind Mercy to be a killer on court. These words of Percy Miller were not lost on me at lunch, “We go out and seek out each prep player that is supposedly better than Mercy and we show they can be beaten. It doesn’t matter if it’s the most hyped up player out there, we have a plan to beat them all through detailed preparation and hard work.”
I was proud to be that writer who foretold DeMar’s grand future. I take signs from God to help me sort out the truly great ones from the merely good ones.
DeMar DeRozan’s 1st in depth story: Click here
This will sound insane but it’s a totally true story. I’ve only heard this hard pounding Rebel Without a Pause song play so frenetically in my head on two occasions: when I watched Russell Westbrook play, and when Mercy was playing.
I always pray to God to show me a sign, His way of saying they are the future in their own way. Feel the Public Enemy lyrics that twisted my cranium at the sight of future pro greatness:
Juice on the loose, electric wire
Simple and plain, give me the lane
I'll throw it down your throat like Barkley
Bring the noise — my time!
I told Mercy and Percy that I thought he was better and has much more future potential than the most hyped of OG prep kids. Even this one that was a grade level higher than him Mikey Williams. I told them this kid gets his own shoe contract in prep and all the attention. But raw jumping and power can only take a player so far, even if celebrities are tripping over themselves to impress him.
I am more impressed by Mercy’s way to grind respectfully. Percy reminded me that Mercy beat Mikey once when he was in 8th grade. They are not about the hype, as Percy correctly says, “It’s about the work you put in. The humble fire in your belly, the way you appreciate all your blessings. Because God is good.”
Mercy is not only a happening guy but behind his eyes is the most dedicated of athletes. He has been prepping his body, getting it up to 190 lbs of nimble strength. He’s building and perfecting the quick twitch muscles with the best trainers that walk the earth to help him on this journey.
You think Mercy will ever blink first? Hah, M doesn’t blink, he just works, prays and achieves. Rinse and repeat no doubt. What does skill and confidence get you in this world? Just look at Percy.
He walks the walk and is always saying, “It’s important to have a sense of self while being humble.” Percy is that singular and exceptional self made man who is a role model that transcended poverty out of New Orleans.
He always has that NO inside him, no matter where his GPS shows him on the coordinate list. NO is his center. As he prepares to scale great heights, his feet are firmly on the ground. And Mercy is just like his dad. Mercy learns from those who came before him - their journey is a part of his heritage.
Percy has no “play play“ in his vocabulary. He made his business empire from being savvy and leveraging opportunities that others could not see. He commands respect by almost making an NBA roster and was a super talented player back in his day.
P-Miller is the kind of competitor that didn’t just go to Micheal Jordan’s camp at UCSB to play-play. Those runs put on by his airness are world-class runs to be sure. I know, because George Raveling game me permission to write about them. Writers are usually not allowed in.
Yes, Percy didn’t come to just play play in those games, he went to win win like he always does in life. When was the time right to beat MJ? P did just that combining on Ron Artist’s team to show what he was made of. 100 on 100!
That’s Metta World Peace’s world class achievement, and how many other people can say they’ve done that? Not many. That’s the level of confidence and preparation that is being downloaded into Mercy from his folks, the best kind that exists in the world today.
Mercy also appreciated going to MJ’s camp and being selected the best defensive player at the camp. Both men are proud of their achievements and are quick to give all the glory gained to God.
I told them I feel connected to their spirit, as me, your humble writer gives all the credit to God for how I might write about them. Me, a poor soul at times was not taught spirituality growing up. I was almost steered to consider being an atheist. What? How can God’s presence be denied, He yearns to see the best in us. God speaks loudly in the Miller family’s golden hearts.
So I know why God comes out. Not for the darkness, what matters most is you believe He shines a light in your soul to do big things. That’s what Mercy told me, so I’m already knowing.
I get the Miller family because to a certain degree, I have tried to transcend poverty and to overcome a total lack of education in my parents to help the next generation and others around me. You need to clap that up 3 times and give kudos to those who have made it out, and help others around them when they do.
That’s what the Miller family feels and I share those sentiments. Percy told me he believes strongly in supporting the under served areas of South Central LA. The last 26 years he’s gone there to give turkeys and personally try to make personal connections to that part of LA.
He stated clearly to me that he had tried to give mentorship and good tidings to the people there, to befriend them as a servant of God. It’s important that his kids follow that lead and they do. He is proud as well to get his whole family to offer charity in God’s name. Kudos to that.
I taught next to USC in the late 90’s and I know it doesn’t matter if you’re from New Orleans or Ventura County like I am when you go to the broken glass rough streets of South Central. If you go with your heart in the right place to assist in earnest, you will be received well by those residents and be the richer for caring about them indeed.
I think Mercy is in the paradigm shift to be one of the best players in his class. He takes on big challenges in national prep basketball. For example, he transferred in his sophomore year to perennial national power Oak Hill Academy and saw his game and confidence grew even more.
Mercy comments on that move and what it meant to him, “I embraced the intense schedule that Oak Hill had to offer. The increased competition we played gave me the opportunity to show I could rise to compete with the best in the country.”
As I saw it, the basketball game slowed the heck down for Mercy. That means it started to look easy for him. This had the added effect of him doing big things in hoop. Example being a killer on the AAU circuit as the 5th overall top scorer on the Nike EYBL circuit playing for JL3.
Now Mercy is at Notre Dame High in Sherman Oaks, which is in close proximity to his Calabasas home base. He plays on an absolutely stacked team that is out to win an open division state championship as its goal. They are riding destiny’s horse to the state championship apocalypse.
The winner to me will have to be riding one of the four horseman that wield scythes of razor blades. Teams need to go through and overcome programs like Sierra Canyon and Corona Centennial. And teams will have to go through Notre Dame.
Would I bet against ND to win it all? Come find me at a game of theirs I’ll be watching, I plan to attend many as I can. Find me and I’ll tell you myself.
Ask Mercy what it takes for his prep team to win it all and he’ll tell you, “We all just have to gel our talents together, believe in each other and listen to coach Matt [Sargeant]. We can do it if we work really hard and believe in ourselves and the team concept.”
It can’t be overstated how dope a guy Mercy is to talk to and truly learn from. He’s pure of heart, like he’s “on 1“ in this mission like I have rarely seen. It’s just like Percy said, “Mercy is coming into his own and on a similar path like local former legend Jrue Holiday did back in the day in prep with his brother Justin. M puts that much heart and training into his own game as I saw with Jrue. With Mercy, he’s starting to build that elite level of confidence.”
Anyone that wants it that bad has a work ethic like few others. They have extreme levels of that special sauce in them. What I call stardust. How does anyone find success at the highest level of what they are pouring themselves into?
Let me give a supremely personal example. Ever heard of Beethoven’s 5th Symphony? It’s hypo mania induced, people. Just like I operate sometimes. Let me challenge you the reader, do you dare be as honest as me E-Woods is with how I am?
I am bipolar. Got the condition genetically from my folks. It’s extreme mania at times in my life when it’s triggered. Like I need a medical intervention sometimes. How many of you go 3-4 months in a row on 1-2 hours of sleep a night? Yes, a curse like that at times.
When I put my mental energy to work and find a “different“ kid that cuts through time and space, it’s a blessing for me to be able to use my insight for the output of my writing. It’s easy for me to write up a great story that everyone loves, or predict about a player in junior high or prep. Because I’m able to rip a hole through curved space time that manifests an event horizon where I suck in seeing all the players like a black hole.
I don’t stop until I see or find that kid who gets spit out of a quantum field theory that can trap gravity in its hold. Mercy escapes gravity. What did I title my D-DeRozan story in 05? Limits and Gravity forgot DeMar.
Mercy too indeed.
I present to you my humble thesis that Mercy will be The Takeover like my guy Ryan Jones put LeBron and Bassy (Sebastian Telfair) on the front cover of SLAM when they were only in prep. I feel Mercy needs to be on that front cover of appreciation because I believe in his talent and way of doing things. It’s like when my guy Scoop Jackson threatened to quit SLAM if the Mag didn’t put Allen Iverson on the front cover.
I feel Mercy will redeem my projection. I take this stuff super personal. Other sharp people in the basketball community have told me that they think Mercy and his cousin Vyctorius Miller should be on the cover of a magazine. I would agree; they constitute what is good about prep basketball. But which media outlet is savvy enough to proceed with this?
I predict Mercy’s skill set will double itself in the years to come. His confidence will grow exponentially. To be sure it’s an algorithm of greatness in the years to come because of his skill set. I told him that, and that I have seen it all in my many years as a talent evaluator, writer, and teacher at 51 years old.
But I have never seen anyone like him, I appreciate him that much. Mercy said he appreciated me for this.
I asked Percy to talk more about his son and he had these proud words, “Mercy is just improving his game constantly. He has his eyes on the prize and not taking anything for granted in a humble way. Just like we raised him. I love all my kids and Mercy is giving his heart to his craft and to the world as Hercy is doing in basketball at Louisville. We could not be any more more proud of them really.”
#heartwarming words
Back to Jrue Holiday, I got to know Jrue a bit when he entered prep, called and talked to him. He respectfully declined doing a story with me because he says he wanted his game to be his story, free of words to confine it. The words used on him didn’t matter compared to what he would show on court.
I had to respect his conviction and mentality. Both Mercy’s and Jrue’s games did grow and build off of crazy work ethic in prep, like all the great players I love the most and have seen the most like DeMar and Brandon Jennings.
It must be noted, Mercy really appreciates DeMar DeRozan as real family. It’s touching that they are close. Mercy might not sit right now as a top 5-10 player in his 2024 class but I respect him as that quiet storm that builds in ability like a tsunami under the surface.
Percy may have said it best: “Others see Mercy’s performances lately and think he should be top rated. That’s what I believe about him too. But sometimes it’s best to use that lack of credit received to build a chip on your shoulder. Whether or not you are given top accolades doesn’t matter.
“It doesn’t matter whether you have earned it or not for it to provide extra motivation to achieve and power long term success. So rankings mean less to us than skill acquisition in the long game of success. God is good.”
#Percy is really wise
The whole time I was writing this story I kept reminding myself what this story should be about, that Mercy is “About This Life”. Percy said, “This has to be Mercy’s story. He has put in the work his entire life and has earned the words you might tell about him. There doesn’t need to be any music industry reference, [I almost used one] just a pure explanation of his life and his basketball goals.
“Just remind the people how his faith is strong, that God is so immense in him. God is good, Erik, and Mercy is living up to His name is what deserves to be known about my son from his dad. We all love him with all our heart for how he’s turning out and he’ll blaze his own path in this world.”
Your humble writer, I waited 10 years to give WNBA star Jordin Canada the title of Lady Killer. I wrote how I thought she put other guards in the trunk with a game so precise and clean, that she would be celebrated for years to come as an LA legend. I told her this when she was just a junior in college at UCLA.
I feel the same way about Mercy. He is putting guards in the trunk now and has more bodies to catch at the next level to come. Jordin and Russell Westbrook are painted on the murals of the Crenshaw Boys Club in LA. They are there because they are special in many ways.
That’s the level I am sure will come to Mercy Miller as well. He reminds me of Russell Westbrook when Russ was in high school. Both were/are slept on in their prep careers. I remember telling the coaches I knew at UCLA, “Hey our guy Jordan Farmar is bouncing to the L. His mom Mindy just told me. This leaves you a scholly to spend and there’s a kid Russ that will outperform all that’s being being said of him. He’s not just a mid major player, he could be a great Bruin.”
They took Russ and how did that work out for UCLA? Here is a Ballislife story on my time helping at Russ and J-Harden’s Boys Club when they attended there as kids when I taught across the street in South Central LA: Click here
Go out and watch Mercy and ask yourself if he’s worthy of saying “Oh me oh my, Lord have Mercy.” His on ball defense is voracious. It’s like seeing a guy who has not eaten in days with his approach to controlling the defensive end of the floor with all his stops and pick pockets and steals from the guards he plays against.
I also paid attention to how Hercy Miller played in high school school. He was really good in prep at Oaks Christian and is now playing hoop at Louisville and getting ready to do big things himself. Being unfailingly polite with “yes sirs“ and fantastically articulate is what sticks out about all the Miller kids I’ve known. Mercy just stands on the top of their shoulders for what love of the game they ignited in him.
To truly understand the work ethic and values that Mercy amazingly displays so young, it’s good to travel back to feel his great grandfather’s mentality. Claude “Big Daddy” Miller preached sacrifice, education, and a blazing work regiment to his grandson Percy.
There’s a crinkle in Percy’s eye as he relates the lessons he learned, “My grandfather invested in me to help pay for me to go to a good Catholic school. Big Daddy would say ‘Chase your dreams youngster’ as he stressed ‘ integrity, a do right attitude toward others, and self discipline.’
“We honor his gracious spirit and remember his words, ‘Put God first then education to power yourself in life.’ I care for my kids so much and I emphasized to them to work for everything they get in life that helps us eat. Feeding your family is important. Getting out of poverty was the first step for us, then building toward generational wealth.
“Claude said, ‘Be not afraid to embrace your destiny.’ I wasn’t afraid and I remember my roots and where I come from always. I had Mercy riding his bike everywhere he went up until just recently. He just got his car and license. I love seeing him exercise to improve his body and the sweat he pours out will be another lesson of life in getting out there on your own two feet.
“There were no nannies used in our house to take of the kids. We raised the kids ourselves with our own true values. We do the work of raising and caring for our children ourselves. It’s all organic homegrown work each and everyday with us. But it doesn’t seem like work, it’s so fun and challenging to be putting lots into our children.”
Percy has to be one of the most spiritual people I’ve ever met. I asked him what was the family going to be doing after our lunch on a sunny Sunday in September and he said, “Bible study time, we need to give the Lord his due respect of course.“
I can’t empathize enough just how off the charts articulate, smart, in a happy go lucky manner Mercy Miller is. And among the more than 10,000 kids I’ve ever interviewed he is the toughest grinder toward his cause of making the L.
He wants to study Biochemistry in college and says, “I want to help people as I grow to adulthood. I want to be a critical link in helping find a cure for cancer. I don’t know anyone in particular that has passed away from the disease but cancer in its many forms devastates the lives of so many.
“It’s takes everything from a person, a life prematurely cut down. I just want people to thrive and live pain free. I want to do something big in my life and carry on the family name in my own way.
“Of course my burning dream is to play in the NBA. I’m completely locked into that goal to improve my game steadily and dramatically enough to make it after college. But besides that personal goal I want to also find ways to help a lot of people along the way. I love people and that will be good karma to help as many as I can on this earth with the time and energy God gives me.
“All glory to God. You can’t get to a place by yourself. We walk this journey together side by side with other humans and I am appreciative to all those people who have put so much in me. It’s my duty to fulfill all the gifts that lie within me.“
Following in their dad’s entrepreneur footsteps, Hercy and Mercy have a sports drink (Soldier Aide) on the market to compete with Gatorade and other products. That is their way to make money for their own future families. NIL deals are also in the works, one being with a detergent company. The boys are very respected and popular with others so I predict the businesses will go very well for them.
Someone else who is deserving of respect is Notre Dame coach Matt Sargeant of whom I’ve known for years. Matt has taken good talented players like Zaire Williams and fortified their skills and mentality to the L no doubt.
Both Mercy and Percy are very high on Matt, buying into a system that is holistic and promotes stellar academics and a give back attitude to the community. It’s a great place for academics in a normal high school setting is why they like it.
I see both these guys perk up when vibing off the great excitement and leadership Matt is channeling through the entire program’s life force. Matt, who played ball himself at Princeton, reminds me of a young coach Steve Smith of Oak Hill Academy. He’s universally respected for building a powerhouse program in a short amount of time.
Matt is the kind of guy that goes all out to bless his kids with the right mentality. He’s a teacher at Notre Dame High as well.
Me? I was blessed to do Steve Smith’s life story, as he opened the books of knowledge to see the inner machinations of premier hoop from Virginia that is Oak Hill. So I can say with credibility that the two men remind me of each other at different junctures in their careers.
Of course Mercy did play last year for Coach Smith in his retirement year. That has to show how much this young man is willing to sacrifice to be surrounded by those that exist to facilitate greatness in the most elite players that want to be the best.
Percy is on that elite plane of that once in a generation of basketball dads. I feel really lucky to be living in a time to see Percy give advice to his kid to be a phenom player and person that has the poise to make everyone around him better.
I often think of Kenny Clark as one of the best basketball dads that ever came out of SoCal to guide his kids. I would strategize 10 hours a week with K-Clark to support the big goals the family had.
Percy pointed out correctly to me when we all were eating lunch that it isn’t just the hoop that makes the Clark fam so awesome, “That’s some great people. When you treat others good and give the glory to God like that fam, eternal blessings come your way because it’s all about more than basketball.”
Percy kept reminding me in our great many conversations that he is beyond proud of the work Hercy and Mercy put in.
Percy sees the world in terms of success by how a person can better their own family name. For example, he always talks about how the older brother Romeo is his hero for being that Miller who broke a cycle of poverty and gained so much respect for the family name for how he carries himself and treats his own emerging young family.
I have to offer Percy my ultimate compliment. Growing up my hero was my uncle Arnie Klein who was married to my grandma’s sister. Arnie was born in poverty in Boyle Heights in the 1940’s as the Jewish son of Russian immigrants. Arnie went on to be an Olympic level athlete that played football at USC, LA Rams and started a tech business which was a Forbes 500 company.
He went from poor surroundings as a kid to buying the best house on Point Dume in the Malibu cliffs next to Johnny Carson’s house. Arnie, just like Percy, neither of them seem to talk about money much. They don’t seem to use it as a measuring stick.
At that level it’s all about getting your kids to break the cycle, spending quality time with your family and teaching them to help others to be successful. A person’s background isn’t important, just the passion it takes to lift yourself up. Having the self made gumption to achieve any superior goal that is worth completing is the sign of greatness in Percy and other crazy successful people.
Me, your humble writer? I never had a family member achieve a college education in a 100 years of either side of my family. But I brought myself up to become a writer just to show it could be done.
How important is telling Mercy’s story to me? It’s why I became a writer. Honestly, I could never write another feature after Mercy’s piece and be happy in my heart that I did something far greater than I ever thought I would.
Real talk? We should have schools named after Percy Miller to inspire them, for reals, for reals. He represents the epitome of success for his vast charity work and the good heart he shares with the world. P is a good dude worth emulating in many ways and he is passing that on to his kids.
When we went to eat in affluent Calabasas, there was this early 20 something year oldish waitress at the entrance that took down names to seat everyone who came in. She told Percy it was a 15-minute wait to be seated, which seemed crazy because there were plenty of seats available in the different parts of the vast eatery.
What do you think Percy did? No, he didn’t bribe or go over the young lady’s head as she kept asking, “How do you spell that name Percy, that is such a different sounding name.” Percy politely repeated his name and helped her to clearly write it again till she got it down right.
But then he immediately motioned for us to walk with him and pivoted to go into the other room.
There it took him two seconds to catch the glance of an older Latino gentleman who was working there. Percy just used his boss look that he has in his eye in almost a hypnotic way to signal to the kind gentleman, “Let’s be efficient friend and seat us now.”
The man genteelly nodded back and in less than 15 seconds from when he got into the room we were immediately seated and about to have someone take our order. How? It’s the Percy effect, it comes naturally to him. It seems his soul speaks to others because he’s this righteous and efficient guy. 100.
Mercy has this ethereal ability as well. So many I’ve talked to are drawn to both him and his dad in a cool way. It’s like both have learned to be the epitome of a man who gets much respect. You see I’m almost the same exact age as Percy and I was around to see his rise to prominence. I’ve heard countless stories of him helping others from people who are associated to us both.
I remember when Percy had this Converse foamposite shoe in the mid 90’s he endorsed. He had the biggest shoe contract in the world for endorsing kicks. If only that waitress had seen that side of Percy like I had, some of us are just lucky for the era we grew up in.
I live in Ventura County, 10 minutes from Calabasas, and there is a million residents living in that county. How many schools are named after an African-American? Just one, Thurgood Marshall Elementary in Oxnard. How do I know? I worked there, I started with that school in the early 2000’s.
Imagine how many more black Nubian Princes and Queens would be inspired by a P-Miller named school. Or one named after Nipsey Hussle, where the core values are to work relentlessly hard, to enact a plan to give your family generational wealth?
How much more diverse and appreciative would non African-Americans be to appreciate the grind, flow, finesse, and pro positive hustle that is the well spring that is P-Miller? How dope would that be? That’s what’s needed in our society.
I need to call U of Houston’s coach Kelvin Sampson to tell him how great a kid he has in store. I haven’t talked to coach Kelvin in awhile. Percy and Mercy were really proud when they told me Coach Kelvin is already feeling them to the umpteenth power.
They were elated that Kelvin said to them that he found them out of 1000’s of other kids at such a young age that he could’ve seen and recruited. They knew he was the right coach when K-Sampson told them, “You are so unique in this game. That rare kid that has a LeBron and Kobe work ethic, so much talent for also being such a good person and family. That’s why we should combine our efforts and have you come to Houston. No one will ever appreciate your talent like we will, or push you to greatness like I will! “
Yeah, it’s like that, as Coach Sampson is known for letting his players go and getting them to buy into defense like no one else.
Feel Mercy’s words on why he chose to commit to the University of Houston as a sophomore, “I’ve always had just two dream schools in Duke and Houston. My dad went to the former, and when Coach K decided to retire that pushed me even further to look at Houston for the place that would nurture my destiny.
“I love and trust Coach Sampson, his staff, the school program, the fans and the basketball players that have gone there. It was a big decision I felt totally confident in making. I just want to help them win at a high level, try to make others better, and keep building skill after skill to get to the NBA!”
Now do you see why this kid is like no other player I have ever, ever written about?
One cannot give themselves a compliment without seeming conceited but I believe I’m an oracle that can tell which prep players will be NBA pros. And an NBA lead medical trainer has similarly told me that I have a 3rd eye to see a person’s future talent and the ability to describe in a unique way for others to notice.
He was proud I used my pen on his son Aaron Powell who has played with Mercy on the JL3 team in the past. Aaron told me he really respects Mercy as a teammate and that he’s a good dude.
I also had our guy, prep phenom Isaiah Elohim tell me when I asked about Mercy, “Yes you have to respect a lot of things about his game, especially his shooting and for how he handles himself.”
Game recognizes game and when you hear a compliment from your peers it’s got to feel good.
But Mercy is as hungry as anybody I’ve ever met and I believe he is poised for a great destiny because he sits at the crossroads of hunger and preparation. I’ve never said that before and it’s not gas. Mercy is that future game changer who will be an agent of change in terra firma.
I asked him at lunch if he gets into style like me. I try to be the fly 1st grade teacher and told him I like to wear shattered backboard Js to class where my students get watercolor all over them.
Mercy answered, “No, I’m not driven by fashion. I’m driven by ever growing my skill to the point of being the best player who has ever played the game. That’s my final goal I’m into more than fashion.
“Curing cancer is what I also think about a lot. I have to be a part of the solution, helping to work with others to save and better as many lives as I can in my life on this earth. That’s a heavenly driven goal. That’s the kind of style I love most.”
That’s maybe the best answer to a question I ever heard.
Let’s hear Coach Matt’s fantastical and complimentary words on the Miller family. I’ve never seen him so enthused to describe a player of his, as he glows up on Mercy like never before.
“Mercy is one of those truly great kids that crosses your path who makes everything and everyone around him so much better. My wife Renee told me. ‘That kid is really special, I love that kid.’ Mercy is more than a humble and likable kid to me, he’s also the biggest kind of competitor you can meet.
“For example, when we do scrimmages and drills Mercy goes all out to be the best. I give him extra motivation by fibbing with the score, or I’ll make a bad call and or flip the situation to set him back. It makes him work that much harder to win and succeed in the situation presented.
“It worked for Doug Collins and Michael Jordan in the Bulls’ early days, that constant set back to challenge what is possible for Mercy to dig deep and show what he has. He gets so mad it borders on being angry to come out the best. But the guys all love him so much and he loves them so incredibly as well, it’s all good in the end.
“We strive to make every day a masterpiece in each other’s lives and this group has a set goal to win the state championship in the open division. What might be the hardest thing to accomplish in all of boys prep hoops is to win an open state chip. The field is so loaded.
“I love Mercy’s whole family, and his dad is that special person who guides him to be fantastically special in many ways. They have bought into the culture, both feet in. They approached me about coming [to Notre Dame], saying they loved the idea of having a holistic school experience that wasn’t just geared to basketball but also toward service in the community and to many experiences that aim to enrich youngsters.
“Mercy had the highest ever Q rating upon entering Notre Dame High to go along with his stellar grades. The Q test is the measuring academic exam that evaluates a person’s intellect and knowledge. Mercy is that ideal student athlete where the sky is the limit of what he accomplishes in the classroom and in his ability to help others.
“Basketball wise, I’ve been lucky to have incredible players here at this school before Mercy arrived. Like Zaire Williams who is now in the NBA and Dusty Stromer who has earned being the heart of this team of ours.
“Mercy is that guy who I can see has a great chance to be an NBA player, that person who changes the world for how he acts and what he does to impact others’ lives indeed. There’s just no ego, absolutely no entitlement with him. He’s just one of the guys in terms of buying into being pro positive.
“But make no mistake, he’s a very special talent and person who has been groomed to be exceptional with incredible values by all he’s been taught. Just a dream kid to be around.”
Let’s hear Mercy detail the goodness of the Notre Dame program, “Even if I’m slept on this year or next year in my graduation class year, I won’t let it get to to me. I feel lucky to be surrounded by teammates that are helping to push my abilities.
“Like I play one on one vs. Dusty Stromer or Caleb Foster to get me going and hone my skills to an edge because they give 100% each time they step on the court. We have faith that we can win the open division for state and it’s what we’re locked in on right now.”
As we all eat and enjoy the day Percy chimes in and just spills his opinion on the table, confident in his assessment, “I think Caleb and Mercy have got to be the best backcourt in the country and that’s what they are out to prove this year.”
I ask Percy what does the Miller family do besides basketball. He enlightens me, “We all like to go out to the movies together, maybe Universal Studios sometimes. Family trips where we all get to spend quality time together. Then it’s back to work on Monday.
“When you are passionate about something it doesn’t seem like work, or feel hard. We just grind and show that we can achieve in different ways as a homage to God. God is good and looking down at our deeds always.”
#wise words to live by
What you have to really love about Mercy and Percy is that they are the epitome of real. They take a tragedy and channel it into a way to help others. For example, I gave them condolences on losing Mercy’s sister. Her passing from drug related causes hit close to home for me.
I lost my dad, my only sibling Keith who was 8 years younger than me at age 41, and my mother due to substance abuse in just the last year or so. The Millers and me? We just all took in a moment of prayer and had a moment to reflect on loved ones gone, as I shared with them my loss and offered condolences to them.
Both Millers are determined to find that silver lining to help others transcend tragedies that are taking so many lives.
Percy had this to say, “I’ve always been my daughter’s parachute, now she’s my parachute in the sky,” he wrote in a touching tribute. “No more grieving, it’s time to celebrate her and help millions of people dealing with mental illness and substance abuse.”
He designated a program to service and assist those dealing with the harsh effects of drug abuse, because he’s a real one to the world.
As I asked Mercy what his departed sister meant to him and how he wants to celebrate her, he had this to say, “She was obviously so huge in my heart and still is. Every time I put on that #25 it is for her. I will do many good deeds in her honor in my lifetime and make her proud indeed.”
That’s what separates Mercy Miller from every other prep baller I’ve ever seen play or interviewed. He is the apex of evolution to the point of knowing why he plays, and keeping this raging fire inside his belly to improve his game and those around him.
A huge voice in the basketball world that also thinks so highly of Mercy is former NBA pro turned NBA coach John Lucas III. JL3, as he is also known, is widely respected by all and is so high on Mercy as a person and player.
JL3 is beyond proud that Mercy plays for his Nike EYBL team based out of Texas. He’s also proud to be walking the journey with the Miller family as the whole Lucas and Miller family are close, including JL3’s highly respected dad, John II who is a legendary figure at Maryland University and in the NBA. He also was Percy’s trainer back in the day.
Here is a link to the JL3 team program.
Feel these glowing words JL3 has to say about Mercy and the entire Miller family he respects so much, “Mercy is that really great kid that has such a super supportive family and comes from a good background. His dad has put him in position to really be a factor in college basketball, and to be next up in a line of Millers that will make their own mark in this world in a big way.
“The kid has such a good heart and love for the game. He’s just so unselfish with this unbelievable work ethic. You only see him in the gym or the classroom, and you never have to tell him to get going on his game. The kid is as dedicated as they come.
“They have a great trainer, Donald Hogan, that travels with them wherever they move. He helps solidify Mercy’s skills and approach and you can’t say enough good about that. You see in their family that they are so spiritual and Christian, just good, good moral people that are driven to achieve.”
Mercy is really on the right path now and is likely to make a big impact at the U of Houston. Coach Sampson is a hella coach that just needs a couple pieces to bring back the glory days of the “Phi Slama Jama” era with the H-Olajuwon and C-Drexler led teams.
JL3 believes in Mercy with all his heart and easily feels he can be that piece that showcases his defense into greatness in college and a future NBA career he has a shot at as well.
What Mercy has to say about John III is heartwarming,”John III is that guy to me, always helping push my attitude up. He helps me improve and get detail orientated with my guard skills. It’s so great playing for JL3 for many reasons. I feel so supported by the JL3 program in striving to reach my ultimate goal for my hopeful NBA future. That guidance I get from John is big.”
Another incredibly great LA based trainer who reminds me of all the reasons to appreciate Mercy is Marcus LoVett Sr. of We Win Training. ‘Vett” as we friends call him has these glowing words on Mercy, “Mercy is doing all the right things in terms of his development. He has a dad who is his biggest supporter and has the resources to make happen anything in the universe that could be of help to his son.
“The elite preparation from his brothers and dad will carry him to a great chance to live out any and all dreams he has in the field of basketball. The kid is just a good kid, and talented in many ways. You have to respect what he’s done so far and where he is heading.”
Mercy had this to say about LoVett, “I need to get back in the gym more with Marcus senior. He put me though one of the hardest workouts I’ve ever had and helped me find some good skills in our time together. He’s a good guy and I really appreciate his son Marcus Jr.
Here's a video of Marcus Jr.'s ballhandling skills (Dave Keefer's 1st attempt at video.:)
“I love playing with Marcus Jr and the more time I spend with his dad, the more my ball handling skills could be more like his son’s ability. It was time well spent training and learning from Marcus.”
Another big influence for Mercy is the massive amounts of time he has lately put into working with world renown master trainer Chris Johnson of JusHoop Basketball. His son Isaiah is a fantastic player at Campbell Hall High who I’m excited to get to know more about.
https://www.chrisjohnsonhoops.com
Johnson trains some of the best players the NBA and Mercy feels that he is getting so much better in their time together over the last 3 years. Mercy says, “He challenged me to be the best version of myself. We have a close and dynamic relationship.”
Let’s hear the upbeat Johnson speak on Mercy, “We both have put in a crazy level of work level to establish what we have built together in his game.”
Chris beams with pride as he goes into exquisite detail on his trainee, “People must know on a personal level that this kid Mercy will impact so many people in his life as he grows. He will inspire and uplift them through his personality and ways of being. That must be stated, first and foremost above basketball.
“He obviously stands on the mantle of his brothers Hercy, Romeo, and his dad that have put so much great guidance into his compass. They built in a structure that not many other kids have that kind of fantastic infrastructure that he inherited.
“He has come through this incredible mentality and ability to get to the next place in his game through the work he puts in and questions he asks that unlocks the methodology needed to be elite. He has transcended over our 3 years to have built in himself a trademark skill that I have only seen in a handful of pros in their fluid mid range offense game.
“Mercy is in our lab truly internalizing the really rare skills that only a few elite players have developed in their games. He’s a mid range killer like DeMar DeRozan, Jimmy Butler, and Bradley Beal in the way they can get their shot off in traffic in any point during a game.
“Those guys are 3-level scorers that developed their skills because of their love for the grind. Mercy is following that superior blueprint. Of course his dad P deserves so much credit for establishing a playing culture that has built this incredible mental toughness that a Steph Curry displays as he shows the mental edge to be a killer on the court.
“People say kids of wealth can’t be tough but that’s not true. Because of his tremendous work ethic and lifestyle of basketball obsession, Mercy has leveraged his motivation to be as tough as anybody. There is not a single entitled thing about this kid.
“All the can-do attitude that Percy experienced in New Orleans growing up has been passed down to this kid in a way that stresses education to propel his sense of community orientated help to all he encounters. No doubt he’ll be an NBA pro, I work with a plethora of pros in that regard.”
I can’t find many others that I respect like the Miller family. Since I met Percy back in the day in 2004 and I was honored then to do his family’s story, Born to Ball. It makes me smile each time I hear about the good stuff he does and preaches to inspires others.
P is as he raises his kids to be in this world: “Real.” That makes him a real one in a world of unfortunate fake and transactional people who are just looking out for themselves. I don’t do a person’s story unless I believe strongly in them for good reason. I put my credibility out there for the best of the best that I feel deserve some choice words.
I don’t make bread from my writing, my teacher salary keeps me comfortable enough. I feel like I earn heavenly credit in good karma for trying to do justice to a person’s story I write, and to lives I try to touch.
The Miller story stands tall, proud, and singular. I was a history major at UCSB in the early 90’s and I’ve been an appreciator of the Miller family for quite a while. I could never play basketball or be as good at business as P, but I’d like to hope I have a good heart and try to help others in my own way like he does.
When a coach we know lost this shoe contract due to company politics, Percy supported him financially because he has much love for him and concern for how he does. I wrote about his story and tried to get the public to see he is a good coach whether or not Nike puts his team on the AAU EYBL circuit. Kudos to you out there if you champion justice!
I gave the Miller family some of my daughter’s artwork, some ultra colorful Kobe kicks rendered with love. They graciously accepted it. I am also giving Mercy a SLAM jersey, because that eternally best sports writer Scoop Jackson told me to break off a jersey only to the best ballers in the land.
That’s the biggest compliment I do, and I’ve only done it 1-2 times a year lately.
What more can be said? This story may seem long but I only do a story every few months now, because the holy spirit has to be inside of me to channel the words to do a player justice. I used to publish two stories a week but now E-Woods says less (stories) is more (words) no doubt!
Mercy touched my soul, by just being himself really. I don’t do drugs, it has destroyed my family. I just try to find that special person/player who touches my soul. It rarely happens at Mercy’s incredibly high level.
Mercy? This guy is consumed and relentless to get better from everyone around him and in turn to get everyone else around him better because he touches their lives and that is his natural high.
He’s about this life, ready to order a plate of NBA pie with all the crazy work he’s put in. M is on this never ending relentless quest for perfection by pouring his heart and soul into the most important things a person can honor: God, his family, and the quest to better the world and find a cure for cancer. 100.
And really, what could be better than that?
