Gilbert Arenas’ tenure with the Washington Wizards ended after he was replaced by John Wall, and traded to the Orlando Magic soon after. Arenas, who found success in Washington, wasn’t happy during his time with the Magic. Initially shutting himself off from the outside world and losing his love for the game at the time, Agent Zero recently credited his own replacement for saving his career with what he did next.
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The two-time All-Star recalled his dreadful time in Orlando during the latest episode of Gil’s Arena. Throwing up every single day while living in a house with tinted windows, Arenas was in a dark place. But surprisingly, the player who replaced him was the one who reignited Arenas’ love for basketball once again, as he revealed.
“John Wall hit me. ‘Hey man, since you been watching the games,’ which now he knows, I didn’t watch sh*t.’ He said, ‘How can I get better?’ And then, when he said it, I was like, ‘Oh sh*t, he’s hitting me because he wants some real information.”
Arenas then admitted that he went right to Google to search for clips of John Wall. As soon as he did, he understood why Wall replaced him, something that dissipated his anger completely.
“But then I had to go on Google, type in ‘John Wall games’ and sat for five hours watching. ‘Damn, this ni**a good. I see why they drafted him number one.’ And from there, it was like, ‘Damn, right. I miss it.’”
Gilbert Arenas’ final few years in Washington were clouded with injuries. And ahead of his return, he then also grew unhappy with the fact that Michael Jordan’s former trainer, Tim Grover was given the responsibility of his rehabilitation.
A disgruntled Arenas was then traded away to the Magic which led him to hold onto that grudge for quite some time. Who would’ve thought, it would be Gilbert’s replacement in the Wizards organization that would rekindle his love for the game?
How does Gilbert Arenas feel about the Wizards now?
One would think the way Gilbert Arenas and the Washington Wizards franchise parted ways, there would be animosity between them. But on the contrary, Arenas does not have any hate for the organization where he shined the most during his time in the NBA.
As per BasketballNetwork, when asked if he would want his jersey retired with the franchise, Arenas said, “I don’t know, to be honest. I don’t know if I did enough to be retired.”
Arenas may not hold many records with the franchise but he can be credited for bringing life back into the Wizards’ arena on a nightly basis for years. The former point guard displayed immense potential. Had it not been for injuries, who knows what Agent Zero’s career could’ve been?
