Never mind that two decades have passed since Jason Gardner helped lead the Arizona Wildcats to their last Final Four, nor that his standout college career ended 18 years ago in the Elite Eight.
In some ways, Gardner never left Tucson.
Not only does his jersey hang on the walls of McKale Center, but Arizona's third-leading all-time scorer said he has remained close to fellow ex-Wildcats from all different eras, a family-like bond that prompted him to join Tommy Lloyd’s staff as director of player relations. He was named to the newly created job on Thursday.
Gardner told the Star that he’s remained particularly close with college teammates Richard Jefferson, Luke Walton, Channing Frye, Andre Iguodala, Hassan Adams, Gilbert Arenas and Isaiah Fox. He's stayed in touch with Damon Stoudamire, whose UA playing days ended three years before Gardner came aboard in 1999.
Gardner said he’s also remained in contact with UA assistant coaches Jason Terry and Jack Murphy. Terry left the Wildcats just before Gardner arrived, while Murphy was an aide for the Lute Olson-coached teams of Gardner’s UA career.
“It's crazy to think it's close to 18 to 20 years, and you feel you’ve still got these relationships with the guys,” Gardner said. “We’re all on group texts, so there’s always something about what guys have going on. It’s like we’re not there but we’re connected to the program. Those texts have really helped out, just to keep up with everybody.”
The connections also helped land Gardner back at UA. Gardner said he and Lloyd learned about each other through mutual contacts, and that Murphy and Terry both spoke highly of Lloyd and the returning UA players, helping clinch his decision to take the job.
That Wildcat bond also helped Gardner through a particular time of need two years ago. Then the head coach at IUPUI, Gardner was arrested in August 2019 for a DUI and resigned his position. He took the 2019-20 season off before taking over the program at his high school alma mater, Indianapolis North Central, last season.
“I definitely regret it, but it’s a mistake that happened,” Gardner said. “You learn from it, you have to move on from it and just stay focused and stay positive about everything.
“The good thing is I had that great family support from a bunch of guys and the U of A, a lot of support from them as well. Then you get the opportunity to coach back at my high school, which was something I always wanted to do. But I think overall, that year off … was just more of a reset button, kind of sit back, process and think.”
Upon arrival at Arizona later this month, Gardner will bring the perspective of that experience, plus five seasons as a head coach, another three as an assistant coach and eight-plus seasons as a professional basketball player.
Gardner won’t be able to coach players on the floor, but he might be doing a little of everything else.
“It’s helping out with the players around campus, sitting with them after practice (and on) flights, buses, helping relationships with alumni, and sitting in staff meetings, giving input as a former head coach in college,” Gardner said. “And also, it's just sit back and learn: There’s a lot of basketball knowledge there with Tommy, Murph, JT and TJ (Benson, UA special assistant). It’s putting our brains together and helping out where I can.”
Gardner will become the fourth non-coaching staffer to work under Lloyd, joining Benson, scouting director Ken Nakagawa and player development director Rem Bakamus. (The basketball staff also includes trainer Justin Kokoskie and strength coach Chris Rounds, who technically work under different departments).
So far, Arizona's staff includes an equal mix of those with UA roots and those who worked with Lloyd during his 20-year career as a Gonzaga assistant coach.
Lloyd still has an opening for an assistant director of basketball operations and has yet to hire a third assistant coach. Suns player development coach Riccardo Fois, who worked as a Gonzaga staffer with Lloyd, is a candidate for the coaching job.
"We are excited to have Jason Gardner, an Arizona legend, back in Tucson and part of our program," Lloyd said in a statement. "He unquestionably left his mark on this program as a four-time All-American and national player of the year. I know he is excited to be back in Tucson and give back to his alma mater as a member of our staff."
Already, Gardner's name is on the McKale Center walls and in the record books because of a rugged and productive four-year career from 1999-2003. Gardner is still UA's all-time leader in overall minutes played (4,825), average minutes per game (35.5) and games started (135), and is third in scoring (1,984) and steals (225) and fourth in assists (622).
During his UA career, Gardner was named all-Pac-10 three times, all-American twice and was given the 2003 Frances Pomeroy Naismith award for being the best player 6-foot or under, an honor that qualified him to have his jersey retired at Arizona.
As a pro, Gardner played for parts of nine seasons, mostly in Germany. He was named MVP of Germany's Bundesliga in 2009 after leading his club to the championship while averaging 13.7 points and 4.0 assists per game.
As a coach, Gardner worked as an assistant to Porter Moser at Loyola (Chicago) in 2011-12 and 2012-13 before joining the staff of another former Wildcat — Josh Pastner — as an assistant at Memphis in 2013-14.
Gardner then took over as IUPUI’s head coach in 2014-15. Over five seasons with his hometown Jaguars, Gardner went 64-94 (.405) but his 16-17 record in 2018-19 represented the most wins the program had recorded since 2020-11.
Two years after leaving that job, and wondering what was next, Gardner is back into college coaching at a place he can still call home.
“I’m excited,” Gardner said. “I’ve already got me a couple of T-shirts. So I'm ready. Ready, excited and thankful.”
