Gilbert Arenas blames Wizards for not holding him back from injuring himself.

[nickagneta]

This guy is a tool. I have never liked him. He has such a high opinion of himself and just loves telling anyone who will listen to him about just how legendarily great he really is. I makes me ill. I like my sports heroes to have at least a modicum of humility.

You would figure that after 2 years away from the game that his hubris might have shrunk some and that he might have become a tad bit humble. Nope. Turns out he's not. Check this out

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=4480321

"Nobody could guard me before, and can't nobody guard me now," Arenas told the newspaper. "If I hadn't come up here, I'd be starting off the season with a 95 percent chance that I'd be sitting out more games. ... [Tim Grover] saved my career."

Coming off three knee surgeries in 1˝ years, Arenas played in only two games last season.

...

While Arenas praised Grover for saving his career, he blamed the Wizards for giving him too much control over his failed comebacks from surgery the past two seasons.

"If you have a kid that loves basketball, that eats, sleeps, drinks and thinks basketball and all he knows is basketball and he gets hurt and he's your franchise player, you need to hold him back from himself," Arenas told the newspaper. "If I'm saying I feel good and you know it's supposed to take six months, instead of letting me at four months run ... they should have held me back. Rather than saying, 'Let's let this guy do what he wants and use him to sell tickets' -- sometimes you have to protect players from themselves. I don't feel like I got that type of protection. But, I don't judge them for that. Some things just happen. I told them I felt OK because I wanted to play, and they did what they did."

So let me see if I have this right. Arenas is saying that after injuring himself the Wizards medical staff, in their jobs to rehab him, asked him how he was doing, if he felt pain, if he was overdoing things, if he was ready etc, etc, etc. You know, if you have had an injury that needed surgery and/or rehab, all the normal stuff every doctor and medical team asks in helping to get you healthy.

And Arenas lied to them. He was dishonest about how healthy and strong and ready he was and that is somehow the fault of the team because the should have known he would lie to them??

I have heard it all now. This guy is a tool and he's not very smart. I don't usually wish bad things on people. But, another setback after this guy in Chicago created miracles and brought Arenas back from the basketball dead to once again be the best player ever, might go a long way towards teaching him something. Though, probably not knowing Agent Zero Braincells.

[ManUp]

I like Gilbert.

I don't want him on my team, but I like him.
 

[dark_lord]

I like Gilbert.

I don't want him on my team, but I like him.
 

thats exactly how i feel, lol

[Rondo_is_better]

I like Gilbert. Especially when he's not playing against us.

[blackbird]

I also really like Gilbert, in the same way that I really like PETA. They make me laugh and make the world more intersting. He is clearly insane.

[jambr380]

I get what you are saying Nick. The guy is acting like a selfish tool. But, I do think he is just looking back at the last couple years of his career and wonders, 'what could have been?' Should he blame his injury problems on Washington? Probably not, but he does make a point. If he isn't supposed to be ready for a certain amount of time and the Wizards are well out of playoff contention, why would they bring him back? Heck, we wouldn't even bring KG back for a potential championship run. The staff probably was a little careless. Saying all of this junk to the media is a little out of line, but it's not like he is the first athlete to open his big mouth about something.

I do hope he gets his career back on track. He was an exciting player before all of the injury problems and he made Washington a relevant team. I also thought he was kind of a funny guy. He was a 2nd round pick, basically always trying to prove himself- I think he is just upset with how things have gone for him lately and is looking back on his 'glory days'.

[pearljammer10]

I love Gilbert. Yeah he's cocky but its awesome and theres something about his play that i just enjoy watching...... However, this statement is ludacris...He is blaming the Wizards after he told them, probably through a demand, that he wanted to play? They more than likely wanted to shut him down but him being the personality he pushed his ways hard, and is now blaming them for his thinking? Please Gilbert. Hes getting close to Stephon Marbury level.

[RickyDavisfor3]

I think Gilbert's work with Tim Grover and more specifically with all the staff at Attack in Chicago is going to pay off and he's going to have a HECK of a season. You only shared some of his quotes. His attitude seems to have really changed about his approach to this coming season and I think he's got a chip on his shoulder that will not be deterred by any kind of attitude. He is saying all the right things and he's going to be great. Great for the Wizards, great for himself, great for basketball. I'm all for Agent Zero.

p.s. ask me this just a year ago and I'd tell you I hated him beyond anyone in the league... so take that for what it's worth.

[Vermont Green]

I think the Wizards should sign Starbury and then they could have the looniest back court in NBA History.

[Who]

I read the quote as saying:

The team should have stopped Arenas from hurting himself. That Arenas loved the game and pushed himself to lengths that were not healthy, and that the club should have stepped in. That the team should have used their better judgment to stop Gilbert's self-harming good intentions.

[Mr October]

Arenas is a wacky dude. Mostly good wacky. ...yeah, I'm glad he is not a Celtic.

[crownsy]

I also really like Gilbert, in the same way that I really like PETA. They make me laugh and make the world more intersting. He is clearly insane.

This is my feeling. I would also extend it to chad ohcocinco. I mean, he's also carzy as a loon, but not in a "TO way." it's more like in a "lovable crazy, glad he's not on my team" way.

It's an odd line to draw, i know. but stuff like this...(note, skip to 4 minutes in, ESPN spends the first four minutes talking about how awesome they are to make this happen, yadda yadda yadda.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-mS0mS_yngU


makes me laugh. Also, is it just me or does he raise some actual points to skip? (who in all fairness, i hate. he has all the preachness of bill plaski and none of the sports knowledge.)

[KCattheStripe]

I would love to see a reality tv show where Chad Ocho Cinco, Arenas, Ovechkin and Papelbon all go on a road trip.

[CelticG1]

I can't really stand Arenas. He hasn't really done much in the league besides write his blog and talk trash non stop. He's just a very overrated "star" who wants all the attention he can get so he will be perceived better than he  really is....But yeah the OP couldn't have said it better: Arenas is a tool

[PosImpos]

Arenas is kinda wacky but there is some truth in what he said.

I mean, our team knew enough to hold back KG.  Perhaps if KG had been in the same situation with different management, he would have tried to play in the playoffs and it would have set him back in terms of rehabilitation.

I don't think it's possible to really judge the fairness of Arenas' statements without having an inside perspective on the situation.  However, from what I've heard there are people who do have that kind of inside knowledge and they think Arenas really only has himself to blame in this situation.