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Gilbert Arenas to test Free Agency

by james on October 17th, 2007

Relax, take a deep breath, Gilbert Arenas can’t declare for Free Agency until after the current season.

He took the opt-out in his contract this past June.

Washington management has everything in the world to worry about.  Gilbert wants to play for a team that could possibly win a NBA Championship.

Arenas has blossomed into one of the league’s biggest stars, a legitimate MVP candidate who’s averaged 29.3 and 28.4 points, respectively, the last two seasons.

Offensively, there is nothing he can’t do. He provided a thrilling reminder of that again last season, scoring 40 points or more on nine occasions, including three games of 50-plus and one 60-point night against Kobe Bryant and the Lakers. He won four contests with last-second shots, proving his worth in the clutch.

Washington claims Gilbert is happy with the fans, the city, the team, the hotdogs sold at the arena, but that just does not matter.  Arenas wants to feel like a winner by playing for a winner.

Wow, starting to sound like Kobe all over again.

The difference is Gilbert is only 25.  Yeah, he is still a kid in NBA years.

Some question whether Gilbert can make his game over into a team style game, but if you were a General Manager wouldn’t you want to test that theory?

The Wizards are an exciting team with playoff structural problems.  (Decode: All offense and no defense)

With Arenas, Caron Butler and Antawn Jamison, the Wizards have the highest-scoring trio in the league. Arenas was third in the league in scoring last season, while Butler became an All-Star for the first time by raising his level of play significantly, averaging 19.1 points, 7.4 rebounds, 3.7 assists and 2.1 steals. Jamison, an All-Star two seasons ago, averaged 19.8 points and 8.0 rebounds.

Together, that trio was impressive, but the Wizards didn’t have the defensive presence in the frontcourt to separate from the pack and get 50 wins. They were fourth in scoring but 28th defensively, allowing 104.9 points per game.

The Washington Wizards better get it together soon or Gilbert will be taking his game on the road!

NBA Basketball Fan Question  Can Gilbert adapt to a team game?

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POSTED IN: Washington Wizards, Gilbert Arenas, NBA Basketball