By Rubin E. Grant
As soon as Patrick Davis was hired as Vestavia Hills boys basketball head coach seven years ago, a young player appeared on his radar.
“When I first took the job, I kept hearing about a fourth or fifth grader who was a really good player,” Davis said. “Then, I saw him in our camps and I recognized that he was a good player.”
Davis didn’t know how good the young Win Miller would become, but he had an idea.
“He had a really good feel for the game as a young player,” Davis said. “That’s something you have or you don’t. And if someone has it, you just cultivate it.
“He combined his love for the game with hard work and I knew that kid was special.”
Miller rose through the ranks in the Vestavia Hills school system and joined the Rebels’ junior varsity as an eighth grader. All along the way, he added nuances to his game.
“He’s been really intentional about his work during the offseason and the summer, working on some things to add to his game,” Davis said. “He didn’t just shoot a lot of shots and then just say, ‘I got my shots in today,’ like you see some players do. You could see he had a plan. You could see clear progress in different areas of his game along with adding strength, speed and athleticism.”
Miller, a 6-foot-3 senior guard, credits his work ethic to being a competitor.
“It’s just kind of how competitive I am and just the desire to get better,” he said. “To take the next step you have to work at it all season.”
In January, Miller became Vestavia Hills’ all-time leading scorer, surpassing Wade Kaiser’s total of 1,792 points. Kaiser played on the Rebels’ 1992 state championship team.
Miller has scored 1,946 points and with a strong postseason could reach 2,000 for his career.
“It was awesome,” Miller said of breaking the record. “That had been one of my goals since I was a freshman and it’s really cool to have accomplished that.”
Miller joined the Rebels’ varsity as a freshman and was primarily a shooter.
“I was a scrawny kid who parked out around the 3-point line and was just shooting 3’s,” he said.
When the COVID-19 pandemic hit in 2020, Miller decided to spend his time away from school working on his physique, becoming more muscular.
“I worked on my body a lot,” he said.
The extra muscle – he’s now a solid 180 pounds – enabled him to become more physical and play through contact on drives to the basket. He also added a mid-range jumper to his repertoire.
Phenomenal Season
Davis described what Miller is doing this season as “phenomenal.” Miller is averaging nearly 23.0 points per game along with 4.0 rebounds and 3.0 assists.
He is doing it despite being a marked man, with other teams trying to slow him down and make the other Rebels beat them.
“I’ve seen all kind of defensive strategies,” Miller said. “The other night I had two people follow me up and down the court. It’s frustrating at times, but I take it as a compliment.”
Miller poured in 32 points in the 56-48 victory against Hoover on Jan. 24. The victory catapulted the Rebels over the Bucs to the No. 1 ranking in Class 7A and gave them the Area 5 regular season title and the right to host the area tournament. Vestavia Hills plays Thompson Wednesday in the area semifinals.
Miller scored 19 points in a 62-58 victory at Mountain Brook last Friday to end the regular season.
After starting the season 3-3, Vestavia entered the postseason with a 23-4 record, having won 20 of their past 21 games. The only loss was a narrow 64-61 setback at Hoover on Jan. 10.
“We weren’t really expected to be this good, so that’s been fun,” Miller said. “Our defense is so much better and Jordan Ross (an athletic 6-5 junior forward) has made a big difference with his rebounding, scoring and defense on the inside. We haven’t had someone like him since I’ve been here.”
Veteran Leadership
Miller’s leadership and savvy has been front and center throughout the Rebels’ lengthy run of success.
“It’s just the veteran poise he brings,” Davis said. “He’s a four-year guy who’s comfortable in any situation. We lost a lot of guys with a lot of experience off last year’s team, but he has steadied the ship.”
Miller enjoys being the Rebels’ unquestioned leader on the court.
“When I started, I was kind of playing with older guys,” he said. “Now, I’m on the court with all my friends. I would describe myself as a good teammate and unselfish. I am our leading scorer, but I also do the little things to help us win.”
Although both of his parents were college athletes at Samford – his dad, Bud Miller, played baseball and his mom, Mary T. Miller, played volleyball –they didn’t name him Win because they wanted a winner in the family.
“A lot of people think that,” Miller said with a laugh. “My full name is Carl Edwin Miller V, and we just pared it down to Win.”
Miller grew up playing a variety of sports, including baseball, football and soccer, but by the time he reached seventh grade he was down to just basketball.
“Obviously when you’re good at something, it’s fun, and I was blessed to be good at basketball,” he said. “It’s always been my dream to play at the next level and beyond that if I can.”
Next Level
Miller has signed a basketball scholarship with Belmont in Nashville, breaking the family’s Samford tradition. In addition to his parents being athletes at Samford, his great-grandfather, Carl Miller Jr., and grandfather, Eddie Miller, both played football for the Bulldogs. The press box at Samford’s baseball stadium is named after his great-grandfather.
“I had some bigger offers such as Alabama, Auburn and Virginia Tech, and of course, Samford, but Belmont has been there since my freshman year,” Miller said. “I have a great relationship with their coaches, and I believe I can make an impact as soon as I get there.”
Davis said Belmont, which plays in the Missouri Valley Conference, is “the perfect fit” for Miller.
“It checked a ton of boxes for him and his family early on,” Davis said. “It’s a good school academically and it’s in a great city. And Belmont has one of the best mid-major programs in the country.”
Before Miller heads off to college, he has some unfinished business at Vestavia Hills. The Rebels have yet to advance to the State Finals in his career and suffered lopsided losses to Huntsville in the regional semifinals the past two seasons. They haven’t won a state championship since 2009.
“I can’t say I never think about the next step,” Miller said, “but I try to stay in the moment. I would love to win a state championship. That’s the only thing I haven’t done.”
