Patrick Gardner, who agreed to a Nets training camp deal last month, will be on the court in Manila Friday at the FIBA World Cup, a member of the Egyptian national team. His debut vs. Lithuania comes 24 hours before Team USA’s first game vs. New Zealand.
Gardner, a native Long Islander whose mother is from Egypt, was listed at 6’11” last season by Marist, but he is officially listed by Egypt at 2.16 meters — 7’1”. He is also listed as power forward/center by the Pharaohs.
The Egyptians take on Lithuania, the perennial European powerhouse, on Friday at 8:30 a.