NBA What can the Brooklyn Nets expect from Patrick Gardner?
Brooklyn Nets center Patrick Gardner has finished representing his country, Egypt, in the 2023 FIBA World Cup and is now looking towards trying to impress the Nets in training camp. Gardner could fill an important role for Brooklyn as a big off the bench who can shoot, but his performance in camp will determine if he’s ready to contribute at the NBA level.
Gardner, 24, signed an Exhibit 10 contract with the Nets towards the end of July and with the deal, he is able to show what he can do against NBA competition and Brooklyn can go from there. The good thing for Gardner is he was able to put more decent tape out there for teams other than Brooklyn to see.
In five games with Egypt in the World Cup, Gardner averaged 8.8 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 1.2 assists per game while shooting 38.9% from the field and 31.6% from three-point range. Here’s some of the skills that he brings into training camp with the Nets:
Perimeter Shooting
While Gardner had some tough shooting performances in the 2023 FIBA World Cup, he is overall a good shooter not just as a big man, but in general. During his senior season at Marist College, he shot 49.7% from the field and 38.3% from the three.
Passing
Gardner profiles as a big man who essentially does most of his damage from the perimeter. He is not much of a force on the interior, but he surely can pass the ball, especially when he has the ball at the top of the key or at the free-throw line.
Post Game
While Gardner appears to be more comfortable on the perimeter than in the paint, he can still do work on the interior. Some of his college tape shows him executing basic post footwork to be able to free himself for open lay-ups or powerful dropsteps towards the baseline.
