Former Marquette forward Erik Williams is transferring to Sam Houston State, according to Jim Hicks of RCS Sports. He will be joining the Southland Conference team in the 2012-13 season, as he has to sit out a year per NCAA transfer rules. Williams played two years at Marquette and averaged 1.9 ppg and 1.5 rpg in 43 games. He earned time as a starter late in the 2010-11 season, though it was thought to be largely a strategic move to keep Jae Crowder from getting into early foul trouble.
Williams arrived at Marquette as one of Buzz Williams' first recruiting victories. He was rated #67 in the RSCI in 2009. He never reached the heights expected of him, however. Erik initially seemed to struggle a bit adapting to D1 play. He showed improvement and flashes of quality as a sophomore, but was hampered by a shoulder injury throughout the season.
Despite some struggles that led to this transfer, Erik Williams always came across as a quality individual and represented Marquette well. On behalf of the rest of the Cracked Sidewalks staff, I would like to wish Erik the best in the continuation of his career. While it would have been great to see him continue it at Marquette, hopefully the year off to completely rehab his shoulder and the familiar surroundings of being closer to his Houston, TX home will help him rejuvenate his once-promising collegiate career.
Nothing but positives for all parties with this development. Nice kid, just couldn't play at this stage. His play reminded me of Maymon: clumsy, lost, slow.
ReplyDeleteI'm really losing faith in these recruiting rankings. We're seeing this more than we should: Maymon, Williams, Blue. Time will tell with regards to a Blue transfer, but you can't deny how enormously disappointing he's been. I actually find myself feeling sorry for him as he's floundering...I'm not bashing at all, just being honest.