In case you didn't already know, I love Perk.  I have been on the Perk bandwagon since his rookie season when I told everyone that he was going to be a top center in the league.  Pretty much everyone but the guys at Perkisabeast told me I was crazy.    Well, now he is a top 2 defensive center, and I truly  believe that he will be a top center overall by the end of his career.   Since he has been around so long we sometimes forget how young he still is.  He is just 26 years old today.  He has improved every season he has been in the league and he is just going to continue to get better and better. 

Jessica Camerato has a great article today on CSSNE about his rehab that shows what kind of work ethic this kid has.  Here is what Perk had to say about his rehab:

"I'm at the gym twice a day," he said. "Three hours for practice, three hours when I come back at night. For practice, I get there at 11 [a.m.]. At night I get there about 10, leave at 1 in the morning, something like that. We've got 24-hour access, so we've got to get it in."

"I do extra conditioning," he explained. "I don't think I can ever get too much conditioning, so I try to stay in the best shape possible. I work out with one of our strength coaches and we do different things every day -- exercise bike, elliptical, treadmill, stuff like that."

"I'm just trying to come back better than ever. That's my goal," he said. "You try to come back like a Wes Welker (Patriots wide receiver). You try to come back harder, at least. Wes Welker, that's my motivation. For real."

Perk took time before his surgery to strengthen the knee before surgery, just as Wes Welker did. 
Seeing how well that worked out for him, I'm expecting Perk back better than ever, sooner than everyone originally expected. 

 Perk has been making 300 free throws a day and working on his shooting and  has lost 10 lbs and looks to be in the best shape of his career when he comes back.    Perk is going to be better than ever and may just surprise a lot of people who doubt him.  What can you say about Perk other than the fact that is just AWESOME!!!   Happy Birthday Perk and hurry back soon.  We miss you!!