Over the past few seasons, Gilbert Arenas has been known throughout the NBA as one of the league's most premiere ballplayers. However his foul play off the court and in the locker room has caused quite a stir. Just before the new year approached, we received word that the Washington Wizards guard had admitted to storing unloaded firearms in his locker at the Verizon Center, where the Wizards play their home games. The reason however, is one that's been juggled around and changed numerous times. Such explanations have reached the surface as Arenas first told officials the guns were in his locker to try and keep them away from his children at home. But now it's been reported that he and Wizards teammate Javaris Crittenton had got into an argument over gambling debts on Christmas Eve. It's also been reported that Crittenton had an unloaded gun of his own in his locker.
As serious as the matter is, Arenas and fellow teammates have joked about the matter time and time again. When being asked about it in a post game interview, Arenas said he didn't think he was doing anything wrong since the guns were unloaded. Something else Arenas doesn't know, is that not only did he violate NBA rules against bringing firearms into an arena, but he also violated D.C. ordinances as well. The fact that Arenas broke the law is one thing, but given he did it in the nation's capital, his punishment could be that much more crucial when it's all said and done. NBA Commissioner David Stern had planned on letting the legal process play out before disciplining Arenas, but Stern was forced to react a lot sooner when Gilbert and fellow teammates made a joke about the whole thing during pregame introductions. As players began to surround Arenas, he then pretended to shoot them with guns made from his fingers.
After the incident, it was official that the NBA had suspended Arenas indefinitely without pay until its investigation is complete. The day Arenas was suspended also happened to be his 28th birthday. How disappointing it must be for both Arenas and team ownership, considering Gilbert missed all of last season and big things were expected from him and the team this season. Instead, the Wizards find themselves near the bottom of the Eastern Conference standings with a 12-24 record. Coincidentally, the Wizards were named the Bullets once upon a time, until league officials declared the name sounded a bit violent. Also, revolving his gun charges, Arenas has been better known throughout the league as Agent-0. A nickname he earned by wearing the #0 on his jersey. But has he taken his nickname a bit too seriously perhaps? There's no telling what was going through Arenas' head at the time, but it's almost certain that he regrets the incident ever happened.
As players now begin to get pummeled with questions by detectives, it'll be interesting to see what new information is found, if any. The latest aside from the gun fiasco, is that the Wizard teammates have been known for playing pranks on one another in the past. Pranks that go as far as shitting in other player's shoes, another joke in which Arenas is guilty for. But all joking aside, & with gambling most likely the cause, it's only a matter of time before the league as a whole begins to consider banning gambling. The New Jersey Nets have already made sure such problems don't plague their team as they've outlawed gambling. Will other teams begin to follow in the Nets' footsteps?
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