It’s almost guaranteed that any kid who grew up in the 90s is a massive fan of Michael Jordan. He changed the game of basketball and popularized it to new people who had never considered watching it. But many forget that Penny Hardaway was also a fan favorite for kids during that time. Gilbert Arenas once said he was actually more favored over MJ in his ranking growing up.
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Hardaway was a player ahead of his time. At 6’7”, he had a unique combination of skill and size for a point guard. His play was similar to the likes of Magic Johnson and Oscar Robertson with his touch and handle. But injuries derailed what could’ve been a Hall of Fame career.
For Gilbert Arenas, when once asked who he liked more between Penny and Jordan, he said that he was definitely a Hardaway superfan as a kid.
“Probably a Penny glazer. I used to fight over Penny,” Arenas said on No Chill Gil.
We all have those players we used to get in arguments about as kids. The guys who we thought were going to be great, only for them to end up average in hindsight. But Arenas had good reason to be excited about Penny as a kid. After all, he was an All-Star in 4 of his first 5 seasons.
Yet it’s a bit surprising that Arenas preferred Hardaway over Jordan growing up. Mainly because he’s said that he was a massive MJ fan in the past. So, he decided to set the record straight.
“Oh, no. So, Jordan was not my favorite player. But with my dad, it was Michael Jordan. So, I was forced to just watch Jordan all day. So, obviously, I became a Jordan fan,” Arenas said.
It’s another relatable experience. Most of us grow up as fans of our parents’ teams because it’s all that’s on TV. But we also carve out niche fandoms for specific players and teams in our own time. That was no different with Arenas growing up.
“But my first favorite player was Penny Hardaway. Just watching him in high school, we were watching the draft, and I was watching his highlight, and I was like, ‘Yo! What is that? Who is he?’ And then I went to school with me and my boy Stanley Fletcher. We are Penny Hardaway fans for life,” Arenas shared.
Not only that, but later on, Gilbert changed his high school jersey number because of Penny.
“When I changed my number, I changed it to 25,” he added.
So, it sounds like Hardaway had a ton of influence on Arenas growing up. And you could somewhat see his style of play resonate in Gil’s game. He always played aggressively and had a good combination of speed and touch, like Penny. It wouldn’t be surprising if that’s where Arenas learned his tricks from as a kid.
All in all, it’s hard not to be a fan of a generational talent as a fan of the game. Players like LeBron James, Kevin Durant, and Victor Wembenyama don’t come around too often, and it’s hard not to appreciate them. But we all also harbor away certain soft spots for players that might not be remembered as Hall of Famers, and that’s okay. In fact, favorite players are what make it fun being a fan.
