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Of course Gilbert Arenas might be back on Twitter. Of course, he might not be.
Of course close members of the media are reaching out to the @agentzeroshow Twitter account. Of course it is responding.
Of course it sounds like typical Gilly. Of course, well-studied imposters can be quick to deceive. Read more »
I wouldn’t exactly go entrusting Gilbert Arenas to head a franchise rebuilding project any time soon. Although, the whole gun thing certainly did have a part in expediting the Wizards’ current rebuilding efforts, so kudos to that.
On the other hand, Arenas is no dummy. Someone who is as quotable and clever-witted as he is, one who has played games with the media in the past, is certainly smart enough to have that brain power translate when it comes to basketball insight as a 10-year NBA veteran (just not always when it comes to where to draw the line with pranks).
Amongst saying this and that after his return to D.C. on Friday night, Arenas had some interesting thoughts on rebuilding and how the Wizards should treat John Wall:
“Just from being a fan of the NBA, I don’t believe in rebuilding teams through drafts. It doesn’t work. Because eventually those guys got to get old at some point. And if they all become successful, eventually you have to pay them … when you can’t afford them. That’s what happened with the Blazers. I mean, you can name every team. They’ll have one, two years of success and then eventually those players … can’t afford them anymore. Oklahoma, you got [Jeff] Green coming up … what are you going to do with him? Then after him you got [Russell] Westbrook, and then the rest of the young guys.
Gilbert Arenas begrudgingly dealt with the media on his return trip to Washington on Friday night. Well, that’s not entirely true. He was in no mood to talk before the game. After his Magic handled the Wizards 110-92, and as soon as the press was let into the Orlando locker room, Arenas rolled his eyes and said, “I was doing a lot better about 10 seconds ago.” He then exclaimed that he didn’t mean to be rude, but he was going to go take a shower … as 20 or so members of the media waited.
And they would continue to wait. Arenas knew this. He wants to talk, he just acts like he doesn’t. Yea, you remember ‘that’ guy … because that’s how Gilbert is, always looking for a show, or an angle, or to just make people wait for him. After he disappeared beyond the shower door just next to his spot in the visitor’s locker room, Dwight Howard joked with the media that he wasn’t going to come out.
“Agent Zero!, Agent Zero!,” Howard mocked the mass of microphones and cameras. “Agent One!,” another Magic player responded from across the room. Howard later joked that Arenas was taking a bath while another reporter joked that he might have found an escape route through the drain. Howard clearly didn’t know Arenas and how much the D.C. media, myself included, feeds off just about any quote that comes out his mouth, eager to jettison them into the algorithm in the form of pixels, tiny little pixels. “Well, we’re going to wait,” I responded to Howard at one point.
When Arenas was done with his excruciatingly long shower, he again put on an act of the unwilling.
Nick Young and Gilbert Arenas were close … still are. When Arenas was traded, before he left town as quickly as a plane could carry him to Orlando, he knocked on Young’s door to tell him the news, and a goodbye. He didn’t even say goodbye to his family (and now we kind of know why), but still … point is, Nick and Gil were a close pair of teammates. Here’s a link to Young talking about Arenas before the Wizards played the Miami Heat on the day of the trade.
Midway through pre-game warm-ups before tip-off of Arenas’ return to Washington as a member of the Orlando Magic, a basketball “mysteriously” went astray from the other side of the floor, bouncing right near Arenas. None other than Young surfaced to claim the errant ball, smile on his face and eager to catch up with his friend. Below are a couple pictures of their encounter…
Gilbert Arenas’ tenure as a Washington Wizard, on the court and off, will be remembered in a variety of ways. Some long ago formed a set opinion of him, even before the gun incident. For others, that incident tainted his legacy in D.C. forever. Some choose to mostly remember the fun Gil, the one who hit game-winning shots, led his team to wins, and blogged in a fun manner about it all. Still others, such as myself, continue to digest the meaning of his time with the team, and all the extras.
It’s been done before to certain degrees and from certain angles, and yet there is still plenty of time to further contemplate Arenas and the Wizards. But tonight, as Gilbert makes his first return to Washington as a member of the Orlando Magic, it’s time to look back upon his last official act as a Wizard — his last game against the New Jersey Nets on December 16, 2010 — and how the curiosity of his actions, and subsequent loss, is somewhat fitting, also representing just a small decomposing piece amongst the last ruins of a construction project that ultimately failed to get past the second round of the playoffs. We can’t all be champions, and that’s okay … and which is why we seek memories of good and bad otherwise.
Michael Lee had a very good feature story on the Arenas trade in today’s Washington Post. The relevant excerpt:
The deal wouldn’t have occurred without the approval of Wizards owner Ted Leonsis, who had been adamant since the summer that Arenas wasn’t “going anywhere.” Leonsis shot down a rumor a few weeks before, expressing support for Arenas.
Everyone probably knows a big smart ass and how it’s sometimes hard to determine when they are joking and when they are not. Or someone without a filter that contradicts themselves repeatedly in the same conversation. These are the characteristics of Gilbert Arenas and why I long ago stopped trying to comprehend Gilbertology. I do not have enough degrees to dissect his words, rather, I elect to chalk them up as “Gil being Gil.”
Gilbertology was on full display during Arenas’s lengthy radio interview on Thursday with Mike Wise and Holden Kushner on DC’s 106.7 The Fan.
Arenas discussed his thoughts on John Wall, reflected on his experience in Washington, revealed what he really told Andray Blatche, took responsibility for his mistakes, hoped Wizards’ fans will eventually forgive him, and opened up about his time in the halfway house, where he learned to play chess.
The juicy parts, since we’ve yet to hear Arenas comment on this matter, were him refuting some of the personal dirty laundry that the mother of his children and ex-finance, Laura Govan, had been airing in public. He somewhat told his side of the story and kept returning, often unprovoked, to the sore subject of his failed relationship. You could definitely tell he is knee deep in the angry, bitter stage of grief.
Gilbert Arenas’ recent Q&A with ESPN.com’s Michael Wallace was disappointing, to say the least. So let’s look back at some interesting tidbits from it, starting with the best part, which came at the end:
Arenas was asked: “Do you look back on anything that played out over the last 12 months with any regret?”
His answer: “Nope. No need to. Look around me. I’ve got a fresh start. I’ve got too much to look forward to.”
At one level, you think, ‘What an asshole.’ I’m sure Arenas wasn’t meaning to be an asshole, but it is an asshole-ish response.
One way in which Ernie Grunfeld can be commended is that he found a situation relatively suitable for all parties, speaking of Gilbert Arenas too. And isn’t that what it’s supposed to be about? Should fans always feast on the blood of perfect-world trades and maneuvers? Or should they consider moves in their entirety? Maybe that last sentiment can only be reserved for special cases such as Arenas’ relationship with Washington, but that’s all we have to go off nonetheless.
Let’s go back to mid-November when I asked Arenas why he went from jersey No. 0 to No. 6 to No. 9…
You can’t really go through a proper rebirth unless you change cities, traditionally speaking in the professional sports world. And now that Arenas has found a warm place in Orlando outside of the rebirth canal, he has switched jerseys again, going from No. 9 to No. 1 in the spirit of Penny Hardaway.
Before a trade even went down, and as legitimate rumors made their infiltration Friday night, I somewhat contemplated the departure of Gilbert Arenas from the Washington Wizards. It was vastly incomplete, but my point was that in D.C., Arenas will be remembered for both good and bad, but mostly for the good.
As the trade became official while I was scrambling to get to the Verizon Center for the Wizards-Heat game on late Saturday afternoon, I spurted off several reactions on Twitter, but I don’t consider them as being anywhere close to complete either. The departure of someone who was so ingrained into modern D.C. basketball culture, much less franchise history, is difficult to contemplate, especially so soon. Surely many, myself included, will digest Arenas’ tenure in Washington plenty in the future … and then regurgitate and digest again.
But until then, below is one digestive attempt I made on the trade after Ernie Grunfeld’s press conference, which was held just over 100 minutes before tip-off. I had the opportunity to write this for ESPN.com’s TrueHoop blog, where you’ll also find a brief analysis of both of Orlando’s blockbuster trades from respective Magic and Suns bloggers in the TrueHoop Network. So, check out what I have to say below and be sure and get the full picture at TrueHoop.
Before playing the juggernaut Miami Heat, Nick spoke fondly of his departed friend with the same maturity as the manner in which his game has progressed this season. Nick then stepped on the court, played his heart out on defense, and led his team with 30 points as the Wizards almost upset the Heat, but they blew the game in the closing seconds. How fitting.
I’ll let Mr. Young take it away…
When: Tues., May 21 - 7:30 pm
Where: Lou's City Bar - Columbia Heights, D.C.
Across The ESPN TrueHoop Network