Gardner returns from flirtation with NBA Draft to lead Cats to torrid start

KEVIN KLAUS/Arizona Daily Wildcat

UA junior point guard Jason Gardner goes up for a layup against Maryland during the Coaches vs. Cancer IKON Classic earlier this month in Madison Square Gardens in New York.

When Jason Gardner announced in April that he would enter the NBA draft, the Arizona men's basketball team was dealt a potentially devastating blow. Wildcat fans held their breath, waiting to see if Gardner would withdraw his name.

He did.

No. 22 is now fifth in the nation in scoring after an educational - and humbling - summer.

Following a run to the national championship game last season, Gardner decided to test the NBA Draft waters and attended numerous pre-draft camps. Once in the camps, he was surprised when scouts questioned aspects of his game and his draft stock fell.

Gardner decided that another year in college would be beneficial for his future, but does not feel that he has to prove anything individually.

"I am happy to be back," Gardner said. "I've always wanted to be captain and tell guys how it is on and off the floor. It gave me a lot of confidence. There are things in life that make you or break you, and I think (the pre-draft camps) made me."

UA head coach Lute Olson said Gardner should not be ashamed of returning to school for another year. He pointed to past point guards such as Damon Stoudamire - who stayed all four years and then won the NBA Rookie of the Year Award a year removed from the UA - as success stories.

"That was the main point I made to him afterward," Olson said. "I went through the great point guards that we have had here - (Portland Trail Blazer Steve) Kerr, Stoudamire, and (Atlanta Hawk Jason) Terry. There was no way in the world they could have come out after their junior year, and Jason was trying to go after his sophomore.

"Only one guy has come out and been successful. That was Mike Bibby. Jason Terry is tearing people up now, and he wasn't ready after his junior year."

KEVIN KLAUS/Arizona Daily Wildcat

UA junior guard Jason Gardner shares a laugh with some of his teammates on the bench during this year's Midnight Madness in McKale Center. Gardner was named on of the tri-captains of this year's squad - along with fellow juniors Ricky Anderson and Luke Walton - and he said the responsibility is something he welcomes.

Associate head coach Jim Rosborough said Gardner took a lot from the pre-draft camps and is poised to compete with the nation's top point guards.

"He was probably a little bit hurt by the reports about him in the camps in Chicago, which I don't think were necessarily accurate," Rosborough said. "He's a tough little customer, and hates to lose. The NBA stuff wasn't terrible, but it wasn't 'you will be the No. 1 guy.' It was somewhere in between there, and he has something to show those (scouts)."

The 5-foot-11 guard took the opportunity to display just how talented he was at the Coaches vs. Cancer IKON Classic in New York City earlier this month.

As the only unranked team in the field, many expected Arizona to leave Madison Square Garden with two losses. But behind back-to-back 23-point games against No.3 Maryland and No. 7 Florida, Gardner brought the title - and a bunch of respect - back to the Old Pueblo.

As if Gardner's bite in the Big Apple was not enough, he scored 28 points and helped erase a second-half deficit at No.22 Texas a week later.

"I don't think we have ever had a point guard put together three games in succession like (Gardner) has," Olson said. "The big shots, the leadership · he has been fantastic."

Rosborough agreed.

"He has been nothing short of sensational," Rosborough said. "He knows the system, and that it is his team to lead."

Gardner has shown the country plenty in his first three games, averaging 24.7 points per game and hitting 52 percent of his three-pointers, an area of his game that was often scrutinized last season.

"I never really thought about trying to lead the country in scoring," Gardner said. "(But) I know my role this year is to score a little bit more."

Gardner's role is not just to put the ball in the hoop. He has also tried to push the freshmen to increase the team's potency.

"He has been great," freshman guard Salim Stoudamire said. "He is a great role model."

Gardner was quick to downplay his personal accomplishments to put the focus back on the team and the overall accomplishments.

"I don't think I have anything to prove," Gardner said. "We have to prove everything as a team."

While the freshman teammates he is pushing right now might eventually take some of his playing time away, Gardner - who has played all but one minute this season - said that is not a problem.

"(The freshmen) are the biggest key to this team," Gardner said. "I love playing. If I could play 50 minutes, I would. I know when the freshmen start understanding things better, my minutes are going to go down, and I am fine with that."