Texas Tech basketball: Three Kansas Jayhawks to know
Marcus Garrett is a vastly underrated glue guy
Sometimes the term “glue guy” has a negative connotation. We have a tendency to use that phrase to describe players that aren’t really stars but who do a lot of the little things for their team.
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But when I say junior guard Marcus Garrett is Kansas’ glue guy, I don’t mean to slight him at all. He is to the Jayhawks what Chris Clarke is to Tech but with a better offensive game.
The Dallas native is averaging 9.3 points, 4.6 assists, and 4.2 rebounds per game. What’s more, he is his team’s best lock-down defender. In fact, he might be the best perimeter defender in the conference.
Much like the 6-foot-6 Clarke, the 6-foot-5 Garrett often plays what is essentially the power forward role for his team when they go small. He’s certainly their toughest player and he sets the tone for KU in that regard.
He is the type of player who is willing to sacrifice individual stats for the sake of winning. Just like Clarke, he often looks to pass before deciding to shoot. But he’s not anywhere as close to being as reluctant to shoot as Clarke nor is he as limited of a scorer.
He’s made ten 3-pointers on the season and is a 29% shooter, which isn’t fantastic but is good enough to make teams at least respect his ability to knock a few down. Tech’ can’t ignore him at all because ten times this season, he’s reached double-figures on the score sheet.
But to understand the type of player he truly is, look no further than Monday’s win against Oklahoma State. In the 65-50 road game, he had seven points, nine assists, and eight rebounds as he flirted with a triple-double. The game prior, he had four steals, the third time this year he’s reached that total.
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You might not notice Garrett as much as you will other KU players like sophomore guard Ochai Agbaji, a dangerous outside shooter and explosive scorer, but he might be his team’s most important all-around player. Keep an eye on No. 0 for KU in this one because he will make a ton of under the radar plays that almost always seem to help his team win.