If you haven’t heard of Mercy Miller, you will soon.
He’s a junior guard at Notre Dame in Sherman Oaks, California, the No. 34-ranked player in the class of 2024, and is already committed to join the current No. 1-ranked Houston Cougars.
On top of that, he’s one of the few high school athletes in the country who has a shoe deal, something even the likes of Zion Williamson and LeBron James couldn’t say at 17.
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Thanks to a NIL partnership facilitated by Postgame, Miller partnered with Reebok in late February to promote NBA legend Allen Iverson and his latest shoe, the AI Questions, as well as the Reebok Classics.
“The history of Reebok and what Allen Iverson did in the NBA made me want to represent the brand,” Miller told The NIL Deal. “Both Reebok and Allen Iverson are icons.”
Postgame has worked alongside Reebok extensively in the past. Prior to its latest campaign featuring Iverson, Postgame facilitated one of the brand’s first NIL deals with athletes supporting the revival of the Reebok Pumps.
Aaron Hackett, Postgame’s Head of Athlete Relations who helped facilitate the deal, has gotten to know the Miller family quite well, and in turn, understood that Mercy was the premier athlete to join up with the brand. Prior to his work with Mercy, he helped his brother Hercy sign with Adidas as a member of Louisville’s basketball program and has become familiar with the head of the Miller clan, Percy, who most will know by his stage name, Master P.
MERCY MILLER MY GOODNESS 🫣 @mercymiller25 pic.twitter.com/oFGUChuGO0
— Overtime (@overtime) February 2, 2023
“The relationship with the Miller family has been pretty authentic,” Hackett explained to The NIL Deal. “At Louisville Live in October, myself, as well as [Postgame Founder Bill Jula], had a chance to sit down and meet with Master P, talk to him and learn about his values and his family values as well as see who his sons are interested in working with and what brands they authentically want to represent and the strategies of how they think and grow their brand both on and off the court.”
Hackett continued: “One thing Master P continues to say that stands out is ‘stay humble, stay hungry.’ I think he’s done a great job and it’s always added value for them both on and off the court. I think that he is super supportive of all his kids with their athletic careers and also what they want to do off the court with their branding, so it’s been great to get to know them.”
As both a businessman and a father, Master P has been around the block. Aside from raising Mercy and Hercy, he worked alongside his eldest son Percy, as he became a celebrity as rapper Lil’ Romeo and starred in his own Nickelodeon show Romeo! shortly after.
“The advice that I give [my sons] is to work hard, never give up and it takes discipline to be successful,” Master P told The NIL Deal. “NIL deals are a way to brand your talent by aligning with strong companies.”
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Of course, while Master P already knows a thing or two, he’s always learning from his children as well.
“Through them, I learned that if you work hard, nothing is impossible. You can overcome adversity and reach your dreams and goals,” he said.
Mercy Miller still has plenty of time to grow until he ties his sneakers on an NCAA court.
When asked about the pressure of having a shoe deal going into his senior season, Miller kept it short and sweet.
“I just keep putting the work in and stay humble,” Miller said.
