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Wherefore Lil' Romeo?
Actor and Singer Gets a $44,000-a-Year Basketball Scholarship. Does He Deserve It?

By Jon Weinbach
The Wall Street Journal

Romeo Miller is a 5-foot-10 point guard with a bad knee. He has never played a full season of high-school basketball. This past season, he averaged 8.6 points a game for Beverly Hills High School, which finished last in its league.

But next fall, the 18-year-old will suit up for the University of Southern California, a program in the tough Pac-10 conference. And he will receive a full basketball scholarship valued at $44,400 a year.

DAD’S GIFT: Did Romeo Miller get his basketball scholarship because of the game he plays—or the people he knows?

The scholarship, the talk of college recruiters, is a perfect L.A. story, intermingling money, show business and basketball. Besides being an average point guard, Mr. Miller is an actor and singer known as Lil' Romeo and the son of a music mogul. Some question whether the Millers took advantage of their resources-and their relationship with Demar DeRozan, one of the nation's top high-school players-to win the scholarship over more talented and less privileged athletes.

Bob Gibbons, who oversees the scouting service All-Star Sports, says he was "shocked" when he heard about USC's offer. "It's very rare to give a scholarship to someone who may never play."

That scholarship is a valuable commodity. Like most Division Ibasketball programs, USCoffers only 13 basketball scholarships a year. The award is based on talent and pays for tuition, fees, books, housing and meals. Nearly all of USC's current scholarship players were very accomplished high-school players.

Yet the school broke no rules, and Tim Floyd, USC's head basketball coach, makes no apologies about Mr. Miller's potential to sell tickets. "We may have more 11- to 17-year-old girls in the stands," he says.

Nickelodeon Star

Romeo's father, Percy Miller, 40, rose to fame in the early 1990s as the rap star Master P, performing and producing a string of hits for his label, No Limit Records. He has since expanded into film production, real estate and fashion.

Romeo, the oldest of Percy and Sonya Miller's seven children, has been acting since the age of 11. From 2003 to 2006, he starred in "Romeo!," a Nickelodeon series that his father produced. He is also a successful hip-hop artist, and has sold 1.5 million albums since 2001.

Both father and son share a passion for basketball. Percy Miller has championed Romeo's career, serving as coach, recruiter and promoter for his son's club team.

The Millers first met Demar DeRozan when he joined their club team as an eighth-grader. A highflying prodigy, Mr. DeRozan started dunking a basketball when he was 12. He led his Compton High School team to consecutive league titles, averaging 29.2 points per game and making 80% of his two-point shots this past season. He is rated as the No. 5 prospect in the country on Scout.com.

Mr. DeRozan has traveled with the Millers to tournaments around the country over the years. He has eaten holiday meals and slept over often at their house in Bel-Air.

Mr. Floyd has closely monitored Mr. DeRozan. A former NBA head coach in Chicago and New Orleans, Mr. Floyd was hired by USCin 2005 toenergize a struggling program in time for the 2006 opening of the Galen Center, a $147 million, 10,250-seat on-campus arena. Since he was hired, the team has landed several talented players-notably O.J. Mayo, the freshman guard who was the country's top high-school recruit last year.

After years of poor attendance, the USCteam has averaged about 8,200 fans a game over the last two seasons. Mike Garrett, USC's athletic director, says the team now turns a profit.

Mr. Floyd met Percy Miller years ago in Louisiana. Last April, Percy Miller called while driving both players from a tournament in Fayetteville, and said "Demar and Romeo are ready to make their decision, and would you like to have them both on scholarship?" remembers Mr. Floyd. "Isaid absolutely."

Percy Miller says he does not recall the conversation. Demar's father insists the players chose USCindependently. Demar says that while he and Romeo had "always talked about going to the same school and playing together," he chose USCon his own, citing the school's new arena and Mr. Floyd's track record as draws.

The scholarships were announced last November at a press conference arranged by Percy Miller's public-relations firm. A press release for the event gave Romeo Miller top billing. It called him "one of the top 15 point guards in the nation," citing hoopersonly.com. The Web site was the extension of Hoopers Only magazine, which featured Romeo and Demar on its cover last summer. The site is now blank.

'He's Not It'

Sonny Vaccaro, 68, was the longtime director of the ABCDCamp, a summer showcase for top recruits. He invited Romeo Miller to the 2006 camp, primarily as a favor to Percy Miller, whom he knew from the club basketball circuit. "If you're looking for the profile of an athlete who plays basketball at USC, he's not it," Mr. Vaccaro says.

At Beverly Hills High School, Romeo appeared in only eight of the team's 27 games this season. He stopped attending most games and practices after injuring his left knee. Off the court, his teachers say he is a solid student. Romeo supports a variety of charity projects and plans to take film classes at USC. "Basketball is just one-half of what I'll be doing," he says.

He also says that several universities offered him basketball scholarships, including Louisiana State and Arizona State. Officials at those schools dispute that.

Mr. Floyd says his staff had Mr. Miller on their radar before Mr. DeRozan signaled his interest. He describes Romeo as a "good little player" who must improve to get court time. Fame was a factor, he adds. "The more buzz you can create, the more news stories you can create, the better served you are as a program."

That doesn't sit well with Don Wetherell. His son Ryan, a 5-foot-11 guard, was one of the best high-school players in Canada and earned a walk-on spot at USCthe last two seasons. Mr. Wetherell says he asked USCstaff how Mr. Miller's arrival would affect his son, who had been told that he had a "good shot" at a scholarship next year. He says they told him Ryan may still get the award-and that Mr. Miller got his scholarship because of his relationship with Mr. DeRozan.

Percy Miller is surprised by questions about his son's ability or the scholarship. "When you get out there and earn something, then you deserve a reward," he says. "Why shouldn't he accept a scholarship? That's like a trophy for all his hard work."

Romeo Miller agrees. Once he gets to USC, he says, "my game will speak for itself."