New Bolts import Patrick Gardner is here and is determined to write a happier ending, after a heartbreaking finish in the Japanese B.League Division 2 Finals over a week ago.
Gardner and the Fukushima Firebonds got swept by the Kobe Storks in the B.League Division 2 Finals last 17 May, losing both the championship and the chance to be promoted to Division 1.
But when a door opened for him to play for the PBA, he grabbed the opportunity to join the Meralco Bolts in the Season 50 Commissioner's Cup semifinals.
The 26-year-old big man was brought in to replace Marvin Jones, following Meralco's loss to an all-Filipino TNT Tropang 5G squad last 24 May.
"This kind of happened very quick, and I thought it would be a great opportunity for me to play in a country like this with such big basketball fans, and I jumped on it," Gardner told reporters after the 101-90 win of Meralco.
"Well, I was expecting to go into my off season, and then like I was taking a rest for a week, and then I got the call for this opportunity, and yeah, I started to get back into the gym," he added.
The American-Egyptian big man said the tough loss in Japan is part of his motivation in joining Meralco in the middle of the semifinals. "I don't want to lose in the championship again ... I still have the hunger," he shared.
But Gardner's debut for Meralco in Game 4 last 27 May was not the first outing he imagined, as he fouled out with 03:26 left in the game.
The former NBA G League player still contributed in the win, finishing with 20 points, 13 rebounds and three assists in his first game in the PBA and with the Bolts.
"I'm just happy we won the game, ultimately. Like, it's my first game here, so ultimately I think that was most important. But, yeah, I think I had a good game. Had six fouls, so that wasn't good, but it's a learning curve. So I'm just here to keep learning and getting better," he shared.
Meralco head coach Luigi Trillo lauded Gardner for his performance despite being with the team for only a short period of time and playing through cramps.
"Kitang-kita mo naman 'yung ginawa niya. He's kalmado. He makes the right decisions. I think the one thing that he has is he can shoot the ball. So kailangan lang bantayan, he can make shots from the outside," he said.
"He's fresh from the Japanese Division 2. He just played, I think, in the finals. So, 10 days off. Pero 'yun nga sinasabi niya, palagi 'pag first game of the season kahit saan na-ccramps daw siya," Trillo added.
Gardner has been in the country in the past with the Egyptian men's national basketball team in the FIBA Basketball World Cup in 2023.
"It's definitely an adjustment compared to Japan or G League or college or anything. But the fans are great. I mean, right when we walked on the court, it was just a full crowd, so, yeah, it was nice," he shared.
With only a limited time to prepare and adapt to Meralco's system, Gardner admits he would have wanted to have more practices and games with the team.
"Of course, you'd want to play with the team the whole season, but this is what professional basketball is like, and you always just got to be ready for the next opportunity and try to gel as best you can in a short time frame," he explained.
Even if he missed out on the gold in Japan, Gardner is using the past heartbreak to help light the spark for the Bolts in their Commissioner's Cup campaign.
"I'm here to do what the team wants, so whatever they need me to do, I want to be able to adjust for them and ultimately try to win the championship," he said.
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