Houston Nutt, Jr. was born in Arkansas. He is the son of the late Houston Dale Nutt, Sr., and Emogene Nutt and is the oldest of four children. Houston Nutt, Sr. briefly played basketball for the University of Kentucky under Adolph Rupp before transferring to Oklahoma A&M (now Oklahoma State) in 1952. Nutt graduated from Little Rock Central High School. His parents taught at the Arkansas School for the Deaf at Little Rock, Arkansas for 35 years. His father also served as athletic director and head basketball coach for the school. His father was inducted into the Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame in 2001. During his childhood, Houston and his brothers were daily members at the Billy Mitchell Boys and Girls Club in Little Rock.