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Arenas uses blog to predict 50-point game vs. Blazers

Discussion in 'NBA Dish' started by jlwee, Feb 9, 2007.

  1. jlwee

    jlwee Member

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    http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2007/basketball/nba/02/09/arenas.prediction.ap/index.html

    WASHINGTON (AP) -- Perhaps the Washington Wizards are showing the effects of a little too much Gilbertology. Two days before what Gilbert Arenas has proclaimed will be his next 50-point game, no one wanted to say much about it.

    "I'm not going to comment on that," coach Eddie Jordan said. "He talked about that. That's for him. I'm concerned about how we should perform as a team."

    "We're going to have no distractions," forward Caron Butler said. "We just want to play basketball and win the game. Obviously, he made statements, and it is what it is."

    "Hopefully he doesn't get too excited -- like he did for the Lakers game," guard DeShawn Stevenson said.

    Arenas himself was a no-show for reporters following Friday's practice. Anyone who wanted to know his latest thoughts had to be content with a new entry on his nba.com blog, posted under the heading "Time to Get my 50 Points vs. Portland."

    "Even if you don't watch the game, you're going to look at the box score to see what happened," Arenas wrote. "My last one o'clock game was 51 against Utah. So I'm feeling pretty frisky."

    Arenas has vowed to score 50 against the Trail Blazers on Sunday as payback for anyone who might have had anything to do with his not making the U.S. national team for the world championships last summer. Phoenix coach Mike D'Antoni and Portland coach Nate McMillan served as assistants on that team, and Arenas unleashed his frustrations against D'Antoni by scoring 54 against the Suns in December.

    But Arenas and the Wizards have not played well recently when the Agent Zero hype machine has been running full throttle. When Phoenix made the return trip last month, Arenas started 1-for-6 from the field in a 22-point loss. Last week, Arenas admitted to psyching himself out by acting too serious before a rematch with Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers; Arenas missed 20 of 29 shots in a 16-point loss.

    Furthermore, the Wizards have lost three of four since forward Antawn Jamison went down with a knee injury, including a 27-point loss to San Antonio on Wednesday in which Arenas struggled again. More than anything, the Wizards need a win to regain the momentum that has put them among the top Eastern Conference teams and earned All-Star nods for Arenas, Butler and Jordan.

    "Coach is just saying the main thing is to win games -- we're not going to feed into an extra hype," Butler said.

    But Arenas has become a bottomless well of quirks and anecdotes, and there always seems to be something new. A quiet Friday received a mild jolt when Time magazine released an article in which strength and conditioning coach Drew Cleary said of Arenas: "I hope he never goes to a party where there's cocaine dust in the air. If he ever gets the flavor for it, he's so obsessive-compulsive, that will be the end of his career."

    The Wizards clarified Cleary's remarks: "Drew used a poor analogy when describing Gilbert's workout routine, but the focus of the article is about what an outstanding player Gilbert is and his incredible drive to be the best," spokesman Zack Bolno said.

    Arenas' grudge against D'Antoni and McMillan has been on-again, off-again -- with typical Arenas flightiness -- since he left the national team last summer.

    He initially said he was going to score 100 points over two games against their respective teams. He later apologized, saying he had been "immature" and that Phoenix and Portland had nothing to do with his failure to make the final Team USA roster. He later changed course again, saying he needed to score big against those teams because he couldn't take back his original prediction. Along the way, he also said he'd score "84 or 85" points if he could play Duke, whose coach, Mike Krzyzewski, was the head coach of the U.S. team.

    As for D'Antoni and McMillan, they both recognize this is Arenas being Arenas, that this is the standard M.O. for a player who has made a career of proving doubters wrong whenever he's been slighted. Still, they've been a little perplexed and a little bemused by all the fuss.

    "This guy has always tried to find reasons to motivate himself," McMillan told The Oregonian. "That's cool. I'm glad he recognizes who I was. It doesn't faze me. I guess he thinks Mike and I were on the committee that makes decisions there, but we weren't."

    Copyright 2007 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

    I used to like Gilbert but sometimes these cocky stuff and this US team dropped out revenge case are just too much!
    Enough is enough! Gilbert, just shut up and play great basketball! Stop trying be an attention w****!
     
  2. Yaozer

    Yaozer Member

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    Geez... tone it down with the cockiness! When I read "time to get my 50 vs Portland" sounds to me like "Time to be selfish, not pass, and care only about myself... te-team...-mates??? what is THAT?"
     
  3. tigermission1

    tigermission1 Contributing Member

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    He's a great scorer, but he's pretty one-dimensional as a player.
     
  4. v3.0

    v3.0 Contributing Member

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    how about predicting a championship, or maybe just the eastern conference finals? Say what you will that he's an easygoing guy, but the guy is annoying to me, no wonder Kobe called him out.
     
  5. Dave_78

    Dave_78 Member

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    Sounds like his team is getting sick of his BS. After watching the video of his 3 point contest with D. Stevenson we already knew those guys probably aren't getting along. Now, you have Caron Butler sounding like he is getting a bit frustrated with Gil's antics too. Arenas is becoming a bit of a joke to me.

    Add this drama to Etan and Haywood beating each other up all the time and the Wizards' practices must be fun to watch.
     
  6. macfan

    macfan Contributing Member

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    It's sad when super talents like Tmac, Vince and Gil let the mental part of the game dictate how they play on the court and derail their ambitions.


    Gilbert is obsessive compulsive. He let the MVP talk and the "Arenas is God" talk get to his head. Once you hype yourself to such a level, anything you do can't seem good enough so you start doubting your abilities and introduce a mental factor into your game that should have neve been there in the first place.

    Now's he not getting the attention that he was getting last month so he's coming up with these crazy stunts. It's a sign of mental weakness and inexperience really.

    JVG says it best: You're never as good as you're hyped to be and you're never as bad as when you're down on your luck

    He's already struggled in the past week. He will either have a disinterested game against the Blazers or he will jack it up so many times and freeze his teammates out.

    Either way, the Wizards will get blown out by the Blazers.
     
  7. kaleidosky

    kaleidosky Your Tweety Bird dance just cost us a run

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    wow, a lot of people that agree with me here.


    Where are all the "agent zero"-lovers that were out nonstop in the 3 pt contest thread?


    Gil will come up with some BS excuse when he doesn't score 50. My boy Jarrett Jack will hold him down with some physicality that Gil isn't used to getting back at him! ;)
     
  8. macfan

    macfan Contributing Member

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    Even his biggest fans are put off by this. In the end it comes down to winning games. It's fine if you score 50, but you have to win that game.

    He seems like a great guy, but he's not handling the spotlight well.
     
  9. A_3PO

    A_3PO Member

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    Gilbert has been (and remains) one of my favorite players in the NBA. His dedication to basketball is something other NBA players should emulate.

    Still, he needs to chill with the outrageous comments. Enough is enough, especially with their struggles since Jamison went down.
     
  10. slcrocket

    slcrocket Contributing Member

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    I'm loving every minute of it. Why the hell else would I care about Washington v Portland?

    Attention w****? Absolutely. But he certainly spices up a catatonic Eastern Conference.
     
  11. durvasa

    durvasa Contributing Member

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    He probably wont reach 50. Im wondering what his post game response will be when he falls short.
     
  12. waelhakmeh

    waelhakmeh Member

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    i hope he gets 50 in the first half... and the win.
     
  13. Tommy

    Tommy Member

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    That's actually what I'm ready to post :D
     
  14. hoopstar

    hoopstar Member

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    Gilbert is one of my favorite players and I love his attitude. This is still a game, have fun and prove your doubters wrong agent zero! Hibachi!!
     
  15. astrorockette

    astrorockette Member

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    At least he's confident. Will he make it? Probably not but at least he's creating some publicity for himself and hyping for whats sure to be a lackluster game otherwise.
     
  16. Ziggy

    Ziggy QUEEN ANON

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    Nobody would care about that damn team if Arenas didnt run his mouth. Hell, it makes things funner for me as a fan. Ali talked big game and nobody b****ed. Arenas is no Ali. But let him talk. Gives us a reason to watch...
     
  17. superfob

    superfob Mommy WOW! I'm a Big Kid now.

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    I'll be happier if he can get 10 steals. I need to win my fantasy matchup :D

    As for his comment, he certainly is getting the attention he wants.
     
  18. bladeage

    bladeage Contributing Member

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    I predict a hard flagrant foul in the first quarter on Arenas, courtesy of Zach Randolph.
     
  19. pgabriel

    pgabriel Educated Negro

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    its funny, i've usually avoided the threads that hype him so much because I really don't care more or less, but he's always been sort of arrogant. its just that he's well spoken and funny so people like it.
     
  20. Chopped

    Chopped Member

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    this is why i love Gilbert, his stupid/funny/cocky antics add to the one of a kind personality that Arenas is.
     

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