Though the Auburn Tigers are deep in preparation for their upcoming exhibition games next month, head coach Steven Pearl and company have been busy in the recruiting ranks. On Monday, the Tigers landed the first commitment of their 2027 class in Jason Gardner Jr.
Gardner is a 6-foot-1, 185-pound point guard who hails from Fishers, Indiana. A four-star prospect, Gardner is currently rated as the 15th-best point guard in the 2027 class as well as the fifth-best in-class player from his home state.Â
The Tigers beat out programs like Florida, Ohio State, UCLA and Stanford for the blue-chipper, who could provide massive upside for the Tigers in the coming seasons.Â
Gardner is coming off his best season yet for his hometown high school, the Fishers Tigers, in which he averaged 20.3 points, 5.4 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game. Notably, Gardner is not a high-volume three-point shooter, instead preferring to drive, cut or slash as he works to create shot opportunities for either himself or his teammates.Â
The four-star is also an exceptional passer, which should bode well for the Tigers’ future, as they have several top targets who could be on the receiving end of some Gardner dimes, either down low or on the perimeter.
Gardner’s enrollment is set for the fall of 2027, which could be a great sign for the Tigers, who are set to lose at least one of their top guard options, Kevin Overton, at the conclusion of this season. The Tigers’ starting point guard, Tahaad Pettiford, is also trending toward an NBA Draft selection, though he’ll have one more year if things don’t quite work out in 2026.
Gardner likely will not replace the three-point production of either Overton or Pettiford, both of whom are among the better three-point shooters in the country; what he provides, though, is a court-general-type presence that may allow him to run the Tigers’ offense at high efficiency, depending on how Pearl and company decide to develop him.
The Tigers typically don’t sign many recruits per class, so Auburn going out of their way to land Gardner is a high sign of praise and belief from Steven Pearl’s staff. The Tigers haven’t shied away from using true freshmen as key players in their scheme, either, so Gardner could be seeing some on-court time in the orange and blue before long.
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