Arenas Fakes Injury For Young, Gets Fined

By Jesse Jones

In the first preseason game in Washington for the Washington Wizards, it was reported that Gilbert Arenas would not play because of a knee injury.  In his place, Nick Young started against the Atlanta Hawks.

However, Wednesday, Arenas told the media that he does not have a knee injury, but instead he faked the injury so that Young could start.  “I told [Young] I’d sacrifice playing tonight so he can get some time in because I know he’s kind of frustrated he’s not getting a chance to crack the [small forward] position, especially since we’re going three guards,” Arenas said.  “So I told him I’ll go and fake an injury or say something’s wrong with me so you can start.”

Young took full advantage of this opportunity, as he scored 24 points on 10-14 shooting, including 4-7 from three, and 2 steals.  Along with 19 points and 7 assists from John Wall, the Wizards would win the game 107-92.

The move ultimately came with consequences for Arenas.  Head coach Flip Saunders has fined him an undisclosed amount.  Arenas still expects to play Thursday, in what would be his first game back in action in D.C.

Although Arenas lied and was fined, I don’t see this as anything major.  Arenas put the team first, which people have always wanted him to do, and by doing this, allowed Nick Young to show what he can do and after his performance last night, Young’s confidence has had to have risen.

And let’s not forget, this is a preseason game, it doesn’t mean much.

New Look Gilbert

By Jesse Jones

Don’t expect the fun-loving, always playing around personality from Gilbert Arenas this year.  Expect a new look, new number, and new personality from Arenas.

On media day, the Arenas showed up with a beard, switched his jersey to number 9, and had the facial expression that lacked the comical personality most of us have become used to.  When asked why he had no smile throughout the session, Arenas said that he only wants to smile on the court.

Apparently not everybody believed this response, so when he was asked whether he was happy or not, Arenas responded, “I’m very happy.  In the past, I used to show happiness on the outside. There’s no need to do that anymore. Now I can just play the game the right way and play with my passion, and that’s really the focus.”

Head coach Flip Saunders said that Arenas is more focused and serious now, and that showed as he was the first one to pass Saunder’s conditioning test.

Arenas’ media session was cut short, so to find out what his beard was all about, reporters turned to Nick Young.  Young said the beard is a bet between the two, and his part of the bet is to grow an afro.

Yes, the Wizards are in a rebuilding mode, and with the new superstars on the Heat, and the Magic still being a championship contender, don’t expect anything great this season from the team.  But there is a lot of optimism surrounding the team this year, and the playoffs are a reachable goal.  Gilbert Arenas seems to know this, and is changing the way he approaches the game.

Arenas Not To Talk About Guns, Wizards Get New Unis

By Jesse Jones

Gilbert Arenas met with NBA Commissioner David Stern Tuesday to discuss Arenas’ standings with the league and his future.

Stern told Arenas he is in good standings after all the heavy prices he has had to pay, and that he is excited that Arenas is back.  But that was not the only thing Stern had to say.  Stern told Arenas not to mention anything about his gun scandal last season to the media.  “I said, ‘You know what Gilbert, I just want to tell you, I’m delighted to have you back, you’ve paid a heavy price, but you’re in good standing and, as far as I’m concerned, you should be talking only about the future and not about the past. And if anyone asks you why, you can say the commissioner told you,’ “ Stern told Arenas.

You can’t blame him for not wanting the past brought up can you?

In other news, the Washington Wizards will be changing their colors, and possibly their logo.  The team is under the new ownership of Ted Leonsis, who also owns the Captials.  So it should not be a surprise that the team is switching it’s colors back to the red, white and blue of the Bullets days.  The change will take place in the 2011-2012 season.  A name change has not been reported yet, even though there has been widespread calling to go back to the Bullets or get away from the Wizards, but a change in colors and uniforms is one step closer.

Arenas Switches His Number

By Jesse Jones

Agent Zero will no longer be a nickname that Gilbert Arenas will go by.  The Washington Wizards point guard has changed his number from 0 to 9.

The significance of the number 9 is not known, but the significance of the switch appears to be.  It seems that Gilbert is going to do some growing up (well try to) and rid the organization of his antics, such as playing poker at halftime, and put the past behind him (do I need to go into last year?).  Hopefully, he will continue to stay in the gym as much as he did when he was in his prime, and he can continue to be a player that can score 20+ every night.

The switch to the number 9 leaves Yi Jianlian with no number for the time being, as he was number 9 in New Jersey.

Evaluating The Options For Number 1

By Jesse Jones

John Wall is the sure pick to go number one in this year’s NBA Draft.  But there are some other players that the Washington Wizards could use, and choose with their first pick.

One alternative is the reigning player of the year, Evan Turner.  Turner, Ohio State’s start shooting guard, averaged 20.4 points, 9.2 rebounds, and 6 assists last season.  If the team decides to keep Gilbert Arenas as their starting point guard, which they have claimed they would do, Turner would be an excellent fit as Arenas’ number two.

Another option is Kentucky forward/center DeMarcus Cousins.  Cousins is 6-11, 270 pounds, a huge body that Washington does not have.  He averaged 15.1 points, 9.8 rebounds, and 1.8 blocks last season.  Next to Andray Blatche and/or a free agent, Washington’s frontcourt could be pretty solid.

But these two options does not mean that the team is considering not taking John Wall, they are just some possibilities.  Wall has Derrick Rose quickness and skill, something that is not easily passed up on.  He was the number one recruit in the nation, and is the projected number one pick in this year’s upcoming draft.  If Wall is chosen, there’s an extremely high chance he will be the starting point guard next season in Washington.

Drafting John Wall would also be the equivilant of drafting Alexander Ovechkin.  Ted Leonsis, who is the owner of the Washington Capitals, is very close to reaching a deal in June to become the owner of the Washington Wizards.  Ovechkin has changed the culture of the Caps, and has brought great success for the Caps.  Wall can do the same for the Wizards.

So where does that leave Gilbert Arenas, who still has that huge contract?  Put Arenas at the two, as we have seen that he is a prolific shooter.  This backcourt would be deadly in the NBA.

These are just suggestions for the Washington Wizards, and by no means what is going through their heads.  However, none of these options would be a bad choice.

Arenas Avoids Jail

By Jesse Jones

The day Gilbert Arenas has been waiting for came and went.  He was scheduled to be sentenced, possibly to jail, today because of the gun incident that took place in December.  Many believed he would receive some jail time, but that is not the case.

Arenas has been sentenced to two-years supervised probation, 30 days in a halfway house, 400 hours of community service, and a $5,000 fine that will go to the Victim of Violent Crimes Fund.

It is still unknown what the Wizards will do with him, but Ernie Grunfeld has said that he expects to keep him as long as he is under contract.

Arenas: Where does he rank?

By Ben Linton

So today Washington Wizards Guard and “franchise player” Gilbert Arenas was given a felony for his gun possessions and locker room confrontation with a teammate. He may face up to five years in prison and is still suspended indefinitely. This will forever scare his image and place him in the conversations with other athletes like Plaxico Burress, Ron Artest, Tiger Woods, and Michael Vick.

What makes this case with Arenas even worse is that he joked about his mistakes earlier, pointing fake guns with his fingers at his teammates and pretend to shoot, while they laughed at him. I’m pretty sure we won’t see Plax hold up a gun finger or Tiger Woods doing a pelvic thrust or Michael Vick barking on camera ever again.

Arenas has been a let down to his fans, his owner, and his teammates, and although it seems his apology is sincere, nothing can be taken seriously with Agent Zero. He just doesn’t seem to care about anything at all.

So where do we rank him with the rest of the professional world’s bad boys? If I were to rank the before-mentioned athletes, I would put Vick at the Top, followed by Plaxico, Agent Zero, Ron Artest, then Tiger Woods.

Burress and Arenas didn’t physically harm anyone but themselves, so therefore I’d put Vick ahead because he killed defenseless animals with no remorse. Since Arenas didn’t actually fire his gun, Plaxico is higher up than him. But i’ll have to put Agent Zero ahead on Ron Artest, even though Artest has attacked fans and confessed to drinking at half time of games. That is not as serious and life threatening as a think life guns are. One pull of the trigger and you or someone else is gone forever. Definitely not something to joke about.

That seems weird that Gilbert is in a company like that but he messed up and has to deal with the consequences. Feel free to comment back on this and give me your opinions/rankings on the matter.

Wizards Update

By Jesse Jones

Just one day after Gilbert Arenas was suspended for the season without pay, new information leaked from the Arenas-Crittenton incident.  People who were inside the locker room said that Crittenton threw one of the guns Arenas put infront of his locker, and said he didn’t need any of his guns because he had his own.  Crittenton then proceeded to take out his own gun, load it, and cock it.  Well, if Arenas got suspended for putting unloaded guns infront of a locker, what should Javaris Crittenton get?  Maybe a ban from the league?  I think so.  Crittenton is denying the reports, and eventually David Stern will have the ultimate decision in this situation.

Back to the on-the-court action.

Last night the Washington Wizards played their first game without Arenas against the division leaders Orlando Magic.  Before the game, captain Antawn Jamison took the mic and apologized to the fans, asked for their support, and said that they would improve their play, especially at home.  That’s exactly what they did.  The Wizards pulled the upset, winning 104-97, getting their 12th win of the season.  Yes, 12th… Jamison scored 28 points and added 11 boards, Caron Butler added 23, Foye put up 20, and Haywood scored 18 to go along with 15 rebounds.  The team is now 12-22.

In other news, Mike Miller cut off all of his hair.

Personally, I liked his long hair.

Agent Zero suspended

By Ben Linton

Gilbert Arenas, Washington Wizards guard who is mainly known for his “DAGGER!”s, will now be known for guns instead. Arenas was suspended today indefinitely by commissioner David Stern. Don’t expect Gil to see the court any time soon, maybe even for the rest of the season, pretty much killing the Wizards chance of making the playoffs, as if they were going there with him anyways.

This is such a bone head move. Its just not something your “franchise” player does. Guns are a serious thing and should not be played with, even if this was all a joke. I’m glad that Arenas apologized, as any sane person would do after thinking about their actions, but that doesn’t mean his image is altered and slate immediately becomes clean. From now on, it will be an uphill climb for Agent Zero to get back to his glory days. If those days are still ahead of him and not behind him.

The Wizards Should Go Back To “The Bullets”

By Jesse Jones

Reports are spreading around the NBA world about the problems with the Washington Wizards. This problem involves the law.

Apparently Gilbert Arenas and Javaris Crittenton were having an argument over Arenas not living up to his end of a bet the two had made. Things must have gotten pretty bad, as Arenas pulled a gun on Crittenton, who responded by pulling his own gun on Arenas.

The league, as well as D.C. police are looking into the matter. I’m not sure if guns are allowed in locker rooms, but they shouldn’t be. And the fact that two players had them is even worse. Suspensions, and maybe legal trouble could be looming for the two players.

It seems that the biggest problem for the Wizards is chemistry. Two players pulling guns on eachother is ridiculous, and maybe that’s why you see a lack of effort on the court. Flip Saunders has his hands full, and things in D.C. are just getting progressively worse after what seemed to be a bounce-back season.