
Career achievements for Josh Perkins
For those who are still weary of Perkins and what he has done for Gonzaga, here are some facts to chew on;
Wins
Perkins passed former teammate Silas Melson for second place all-time on the NCAA wins list with 127. No. 1 is another former teammate in Karnowski, who has 137 total. In order to become No. 1, he’ll have to win the national championship. Even if he gets to 132, that’ll be an average of a whopping 33 wins a season for Perkins. Most players who be happy to just being a part of a couple of 25+ win teams.
Assists
Santangelo’s all-time assist record has been broken but another one is in danger. The former Gonzaga great had 225 assists in 1999-2000, currently the highest in a single-season for the program. Perkins is currently at 192, just 33 shy of breaking that mark. There are five guaranteed games left for Gonzaga and the guard is averaging seven a game, which would be enough to break it without the likely extra battles.
Success on the Big stage
The Bulldogs have made it to four straight Sweet Sixteens, which Perkins being a starter on three of them. Barring a massive upset in the first weekend of the NCAA Tournament, that means that the senior guard will have made the second weekend all four seasons.
Don’t forget about the non-conference tournament successes. Including the Maui Invitational, Perkins led the team to the Advocare Invitational title in 2017, and a respectable performance in last year’s inaugural PK80 Invitational.
Lack of bad losses
With all of the negative thoughts about Perkins and his play at times and how it might cost the team games, the number of times Gonzaga has lost true “bad” ones can be count on a single hand. Since arriving in Spokane, Perkins has never lost to any WCC team outside of BYU and Saint Mary’s, who have been NCAA Tournament caliber in the last several years.
Teams lose to lesser opponents on a daily basis in college basketball so the fact that a player could avoid that kind of fate his entire college career, especially since one bad WCC defeat could tank the Bulldogs’ seeding in March is a testament to the leadership and drive of Perkins, who’s far more mature than many give credit for.
Program stability
A measure of success that can’t viewed from wins and losses is how important the senior really was to Gonzaga. Besides being the ultimate team player and allowing Williams-Goss to thrive, Perkins was able to bring together a bunch of transfers and international players into one cohesive unit each season. The success of players such as Hachimura, Sabonis and Tillie from overseas along with Clarke, Williams, Matthews and others from the transfer market has to be contributed from Perkins and how easy he made the transition process. How many other guards in the country would’ve been able to do the same?
Congratulations to the new all-time assist leader in Gonzaga history, who still has plenty more to achieve in his final year in college. They say that it takes time for legacies to truly be appreciated by people once they’ve moved on. That could end up being the same for Perkins, who is one of the greatest players in Gonzaga history whether some will admit it or not.