By
Connor Doyle
Arizona Summer Wildcat
Sophomore point guard decides to return for next season
Jason Gardner can't say he wasn't warned.
When the 5-foot-10 sophomore point guard made himself eligible for the NBA Draft in April, many analysts considered him to be a fringe second-round pick. The general consensus was that Gardner needed at least one more season of grooming before he was ready for the pros.
Yesterday, Gardner came to that same conclusion, opting to return to the UA for his junior season.
"I have decided to remove my name from consideration (for the draft)," Gardner said in a press release through the UA athletic department. "It is still a dream of mine to play in the NBA. I enjoyed the pre-draft experience and learned a great deal from it. I'm looking forward to the 2001-02 season with a great group of teammates."
Gardner entered the NBA's Chicago pre-draft camp last week with hopes of showing scouts that he could play among the nation's best prospects. However, after three days it appeared to many experts that the point guard played himself out of the draft completely.
Gardner shot 6-for-28 in the camp, making only 2 of his 15 three-point attempts. He also did not appear to be comfortable running the offense, according to Mike DeCourcy, senior writer for The Sporting News.
"After watching him at the NBA pre-draft camp, I realized that he doesn't understand how to play his position," DeCourcy said. "The camp showed his lack of understanding of how to run an offense. He has no instinctive feel for how to read a defense or how to place his teammates in advantageous positions. He needs a lot more work on his game."
UA associate head coach Jim Rosborough said he felt that criticisms of Gardner's ability were off base.
"All Jason's done in two years is win," said Jim Rosborough. "Jason's done everything we've wanted from him. The thing people don't understand is we've asked Jason to subjugate his game because of the guys he's playing with. We've had Loren Woods, Gilbert Arenas, Michael Wright, and Richard Jefferson, all of whom are scorers.
"He's done what we've asked to make this team good. He's capable of having the same kind of years that we've seen from (former UA guards Jason) Terry and (Damon) Stoudamire. He's as good defensively and tougher than 99% of the guys in the NCAA."
UA undergraduate assistant coach Josh Pastner agreed, though he thought Gardner was still a year off.
"You didn't have to be a rocket scientist to figure out that he wasn't going to get drafted after the camp," Pastner said. "(However,) I think (comments about Gardner's ability) are wrong. It's more of a situation where they play a pick-up style of basketball (at the camps) and there aren't any set offenses.
"He's a great point guard, but I don't think he had a good camp. He was borderline (to be picked in the draft) as it was, so his poor performance didn't help."
Gardner - who said when he entered the draft that he would only leave school if he thought he could be a first-round pick - wasn't helped by the fact that his position is one of the most demanding in the NBA.
"I think he should really take a hard look at his position and where he fits in on an NBA basketball team," said Indiana Pacers Director of Player Personnel Mel Daniels. "In order to be a point guard in this league, you need to have organizational skills. You have to be a solid leader. You need to have the ability to get others involved, and make decisions on what to do with the ball."
Daniels also pointed out that Gardner's size, which many scouts have listed as only 5-foot-9 - an inch shorter than he was listed at UA - is another concern.
"If you have the size of Gardner you have to be special, like an Allen Iverson (who is 5-foot-11), or other small players in the league," he said.
While Daniels clearly didn't try to compare Gardner and the NBA's Most Valuable Player, he did say that Gardner possessed the ability to do some things that would alleviate the problems that his height cause.
"He is extraordinarily quick and has a good jumper," Daniels said. "He can take a bump, make baskets, and make plays. I think that he made some pretty good passes during the camp as well, but he clearly needs to work on drawing out the defense to create more opportunities for his teammates."
Pastner said he feels that Gardner has some parts of his game to work on before he will be NBA-ready.
"He needs to work on breaking down the defense one-on one," Pastner said. "He needs to work on getting the room to make a dynamite move off the dribble, or open himself up for a clean shot. He needs to develop a mid-range jumper as well."
Both Pastner and Rosborough said they were pleased that Gardner will have at least another year of college ball to further develop his game. The junior will lead a team that will bear little resemblance to the squad that played Duke last season in the NCAA Championship game.
"Of course we're all happy to have him back," Pastner said. "It obviously helps our team a bunch. And it helps Jason - another year of seasoning will help on and off the court. He's got a lot to work on.
"He's now got two years left to work on those things. That's a lot of time for seasoning. He's got a chance to be a great college point guard and a good pro."
