Nick Young grew close to Gilbert Arenas during their two-and-half years together at the Washington Wizards. However, Agent Zero once took silly advantage of their friendship by stealing Swaggy P’s Dolce And Gabbana shoes right before an NBA game.
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The situation circled the Wizards’ road game against the Los Angeles Lakers at Staples Center. Young went out for his usual 15-minute shooting practice before the game. When he returned to the locker room, he was in for a shock.
Young found out that Arenas had already put on his D&G Velcro Strap Patent Hi-Tops sneakers. Agent Zero was even adamant about wearing them for the game. Swaggy P recounted the details of the entire instance on the Club 520 Podcast.
“I go out to do my little shoot-around for 15 minutes before the game. I come back and he got my shoes on… I was like, ‘Dawg, what are you doing?’. He said, ‘I might hoop in this. S**t’. Next thing you know he out there on the court with some Dolce And Gabbanas on.”
The 39-year-old narrated this story with a smile on his face. This showcased how Arenas‘ actions never really bothered him in the first place. At the same time, Agent Zero also had good enough reasons to slip into Young‘s sneakers without even asking.
During a 2019 appearance on ESPN’s The Jump, the 3x All-Star shared his perspective. By then, his shoe contract with The Three Stripes had ended. The 3x All-Star consequently was trying out different brands. In doing so, he realized that Young’s leather and velcro sneakers went well with the Wizards’ navy blue jersey. So, he simply took it.
“I didn’t have a shoe contract at that moment, so I was testing out different shoes. Nick Young came to the locker room with the Dolce & Gabbana shoes on, and it matched the jersey, so I put them on. I took the shoes put them on, and played. It was just one of those days when I had regular shoes on during shootaround, and we ran out there, switched shoes.”
This decision nearly worked wonders. Arenas was on fire against the defending champions. He shot an impressive 47.1% from the field to score 23 points on the night. This took the Wizards inches closer to defeating the Lakers. However, individual brilliance from Kobe Bryant, Pau Gasol, and Lamar Odom led the home team to a 115-108 victory.
The night remained memorable to Young and Arenas for one other reason. Just days after the game, the Wizards traded Agent Zero to the Orlando Magic. So, this instance marked one of the final moments they shared as teammates.
