Miikka Muurinen put the basketball world on notice last week at Peach Jam. The versatile 6-foot-10 forward from Finland was a huge part of Brad Beal Elite's run to the 16U title.
He was seventh in scoring at 17.8 points per game, and also averaged four rebounds. Muurinen hit 14 of 28 three-pointers, and shot a very impressive 70% from two-point range.
The native of Finland gave a foreshadowing of what was to come in his second game of the tournament against the Florida Rebels. He scored 33 points, grabbed 6 rebounds, and blocked 4 shots. He turned heads with seven made three-pointers in ten attempts. A 6-foot-10 youngster with perimeter and shooting skills to go along with shot blocking ability doesn't come along every day.
He saved his second best game for the championship. Brad Beal Elite outlasted CP3 who came in as the favorite. Muurinen would have none of it. He went for a game high 21 points on just 11 shots. He made eight of them including four of his seven three-point tries. He also had a pair of blocked shots.
Toughness is not an issue either. This MVP type of performance came one day after leaving the semi-final game on a stretcher due to a hard foul on a fast break.
All of his impressive showings in North Augusta led to an offers from North Carolina, Kentucky, and Arkansas within days of Peach Jam's finale. The Tar Heels offer was announced Wednesday. Muurinen is currently back in Denmark.
Muurinen is originally from Finland. Both of his parents played for the Finnish National Team. He moved to Spain at the age of 15 to play for Zentro Basketball out of Madrid.
His mother, Jenni Laaksonen, played 52 games for the North Carolina women's program between 2001 and 2003. She was the recipient of the team's Hustle Award in her second season.
The 17-year old had a huge tournament last summer in the FIBA U16 European Championship. He averaged 16.9 points, and 6.1 rebounds in seven games. His best game was a 32 point, 9 rebound, 5 block game against Greece.
He also participated this summer with the Finnish National Team in the Olympic Qualifier in Spain. He averaged 2.7 points and 1.7 rebounds in three games against much older competition.
Muurinen moved to the United States last year, and attended Sunrise Prep in Kansas. He announced last month that he would be transferring to Compass Prep in Arizona.
Back in March, Rob Cassidy wrote that basketball folks were just waiting on potential to turn to production, and indicators were trending in that direction. Anticipation has now become reality, but even back then Cassidy had plenty of positives to share.
"The 6-foot-10 forward impacts games in the paint but is also able to step out, as Muurinen boasts a confident three-point stroke that seems to be improving as well as a willingness to put the ball on the floor when need be.
Muurinen’s skill set tickles NBA scouts because of how easily he projects as a modern, versatile big. The year ahead will be about eye-popping upside turning to tangible production. Should that start to happen, the top-10 might not be totally out of reach."
His offer sheet is not extensive, but the quality is at a high level. North Carolina, Duke, Kentucky have all gone all in with other invites present from Alabama, Arkansas, BYU, Cincinnati, Illinois, Michigan, Nebraska, Texas Tech, and Utah.
Muurinen is the third player in the 2026 class to get offered by the Tar Heels this week alone. He joins Caleb Holt and Jordan Smith Jr. That trio joins Tyran Stokes, Cole Cloer, and and Kendre' Harrison. All six players are ranked in the top-40 by Rivals. Expect that to change to six prospects in the top-30 when the next rankings are unveiled.
