Jul. 9—With summer workouts beginning roughly three weeks ago, most of the players who’ll be on Gonzaga’s 2023-24 roster have already reported to campus.
Mark Few’s coaching staff is investing in the 10 scholarships players currently going through preseason drills in Spokane, but the Bulldogs may not be done constructing their roster and have the flexibility to add up to three more players before fall classes start up in August.
Gonzaga had just two scholarships to work with before the unexpected decommitment of four-star Australian prospect Alex Toohey two weeks ago, but now it seems inevitable the Bulldogs will bring in at least one more player to bolster the team’s depth heading into the new season.
It’s not a foregone conclusion that Gonzaga will fill all three open scholarships — leaving one open allowed the Bulldogs to sign South Korean forward Jun Seok Yeo midway through the 2022-23 season — but Few’s staff remains active in the transfer portal, indicating the team could make one or multiple additions prior to the start of the fall semester.
There’s precedent for it, too.
The Bulldogs didn’t get a commitment from Andrew Nembhard until the last week of June in 2020 and North Dakota State guard Geno Crandall announced he was heading to Spokane on July 5, 2018. Both players wound up being effective for GU teams that made deep NCAA Tournament runs.
Gonzaga could be in the market for another experienced guard, a la Nembhard or Crandall. With that in mind, we compiled a group of five potential transfers — our third such list since the 2022 season ended, for those keeping score at home — who could supplement the current group of 10 scholarship players.
Jeremiah Williams, Iowa State, G, 6-4, 177
After entering the transfer portal, committing to Illinois and then reneging on the Illini, Williams reopened his recruitment and recently revealed 10 schools that have reached out. Including Gonzaga, he’s also been in contact with Arizona State, Georgetown, Pitt, Rutgers, San Jose State, Wichita State, St. Bonaventure, Middle Tennessee and UCF, according to CBS Sports’ Jon Rothstein. Even as a two-time transfer, Williams may be able to obtain an NCAA waiver to play immediately after suffering a shoulder injury that shortened his sophomore season at Temple before missing the entirety of the 2022-23 season at Iowa State with an Achilles tendon injury. If Williams is fully healthy and eligible, he could be a quality asset off Gonzaga’s bench. Before the injury at Temple, he was averaging 9.5 points, 4.3 assists, 3.5 rebounds and 1.4 steals per game.
Jose Perez, West Virginia, G, 6-5, 220 pounds
Perez joined the train of West Virginia transfers who entered the portal after the resignation of longtime coach Bob Huggins. Gonzaga was one of the first schools to reach out, along with Michigan, and the fifth-year player has since heard from Oregon, California and a few others, according to multiple reports. Perez’s next school will be his fifth, but the former Gardner Webb, Marquette and Manhattan player will be eligible to play immediately as a graduate transfer. Perez has the size Gonzaga is currently lacking in the frontcourt and though he’s struggled from the 3-point line since making 38% of his attempts as a college freshman, he’d still give the Bulldogs experience, scoring and a different look off the bench.
Jahvon Quinerly, Alabama, G, 6-1, 175 pounds
Considering Gonzaga’s need at the position, four of the five players on this list are guards and Quinerly’s one the Bulldogs know particularly well. He played just 12 minutes and attempted only two shots in GU’s 100-90 win over the fourth-ranked Crimson Tide last December, but Quinerly was one of the reasons Alabama squeezed out a win against the Bulldogs the year prior, scoring 17 points in a 91-82 at Seattle’s Climate Pledge Arena. Quinerly doesn’t profile as a strong defender — he’s averaged 0.6 steals over four years at Alabama and Villanova and blocked six shots in 123 total games — but he possesses solid court vision and elevated his play the final nine games of the 2022-23 season, averaging 14.4 points and 4.0 assists while shooting nearly 38% from 3-point range.
Noah Williams, Washington, G, 6-5, 195 pounds
After a single season at Washington, which came on the heels of two seasons at Washington State, Williams entered the transfer portal for the second time on April 5. There’s been little to no information about his recruitment and the two-time transfer rule could be a roadblock for Williams, who missed a handful of games with a knee injury last season yet still managed to play in 14 games for the Huskies. Williams hasn’t been linked to Gonzaga, but he’s spent the first three years of his career at Washington schools, has a relationship with Hickman, another Seattle native, and could offer both length and defense — two things the Bulldogs lost from their backcourt when Hunter Sallis transferred to Wake Forest and Malachi Smith left for the NBA. Williams was inconsistent at WSU, but showed signs of his potential during the 2020-21 season when he averaged 14.1 points, 3.6 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.6 steals per game while shooting 38% from the 3-point line.
DeMarr Langford, Boston College, G, 6-5, 220
Reports have hinted at Williams and Perez being Gonzaga’s top priorities, but Langford, a former four-star recruit who spent the last three seasons at Boston College, is still available after entering the transfer portal in late March. Similar to Jeremiah Williams, Noah Williams and Perez, Langford would give Gonzaga’s smaller backcourt a different look with his size and his ability to defend two or three positions. Langford started in 54 of 73 career games at Boston College, averaging 11.3 points, 4.8 rebounds and 2.3 assists as a full-time starter in 2021-22. Langford has struggled as a 3-point shooter, making just 26% from behind the arc each of the last two years, but he’s been a deadly mid-range shooter at different points of his career, rebounds well for his position and averaged 1.1 steals as a freshman and sophomore.
