What Jose Perez Will Bring to Marquette

Marquette Golden Eagles decided they were not done with the transfer portal. Golden Eagles nabbed another guard yesterday by adding Jose Perez from Gardner-Webb. Perez is a 6’5 guard who scored 19.9 points per game for Gardner-Webb. He will likely sit out this year unless the NCAA rules about transfers pass this summer. Marquette is building a special group of perimeter players for the future with D.J. Carton and add Symir Torrence from last season. Even though Steve Wojciechowski has done nothing to inspire confidence, the future looks bright again for the Golden Eagles.
What does Perez bring to the table exactly? He is a score-first guard. Perez has a good build at 6’5 and is filled out. He will be ready to bang with the best of them in the Big East. Also, Gus Johnson will love that he has toughness due to his hometown of the Bronx, but he is likely that as well. The thing to like about Perez is he appears to be able to do it all. Not just score but also rebound and find his teammates open.
If you’re bummed out that Marquette got a guy from Gardner-Webb, I’d advise you to look at the school Andrew Rowsey transferred in from. They play Gardner-Webb every year. Mid-major guys do not stay in mid-major programs if they’ve elevated their game. Perez obviously has done that. He chose Marquette over Georgia Tech, Memphis, Illinois, and Iowa State. While those aren’t blue bloods, they aren’t bottom feeders.
Stop me if you heard this before, but Marquette looks ready and prepared to make noise in the next couple of years. The amount of potential perimeter scoring with Perez and D.J. Carton is exciting plus with Symir Torrence being the floor general, it will feel like the Marquette of old with a three-guard lineup. They could be special in years to come, but the pessimism about the head coach leaves me cautious.
If you add Perez and Carton to next year’s team, things could get very interesting. But my assumption is the Golden Eagles do not expect that to happen. They still can fit Perez and Carton in, but Tommy Gardiner moves back to being a walk-on. But that’s another story for another time.
Good work by all adding another scorer with Perez.