[Slam] Zero Sum Game - A Q&A with Gilbert Arenas

http://www.slamonline.com/online/nba/2013/03/gilbert-arenas-slam-china-zero-sum-game/#3

Extract

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SLAM: It’s been a tough season for the Sharks and for yourself, especially considering your injury layoff. The season is so short, you miss 10 games, and you miss a third of the season. How did you deal with being off the court?

GA: It was rough, man. You know, when I came, it was like everything was rushed. I didn’t get a chance to jell with the players, the trainers, the medical staff. So once I got hurt it was like, What? Am I going back home? Am I getting cut? It was going so fast. Only these last two weeks I’ve gotten to know the players on the court. Off the court I’ve already been hanging out with them and getting to know their vibe.

SLAM: And you did go back home for a while.

GA: Yeah, I went back to get the regenokine shots. It’s what people get to take away pain and help with arthritis. So I took them thinking that it could help my groin—take away the pain, at least. Heal a little bit faster. It basically took away the pain. The injury’s still there, it just took away the pain.

SLAM: Do you feel that there’s been a return to the spring in your step since you got those shots?

GA: Nah, nah. Not even close. With the tear that’s still there, I can’t push off or jump like I want to. I can’t move well side to side. It took away everything I built on over the summer.

SLAM: But it does seem like the joy in your game is back. Being back on the court, back with teammates…

GA: You know, that’s all basketball is. If someone loves something, and you take it away, it’s like, what does he do now? What does someone do? That’s what happened with me in the last couple of years in the NBA when I went to Orlando, and then I got benched. And I was in Memphis and I wasn’t playing. It was just like, why do I wanna keep doing this? So then when I got the chance to come to China to play…OK! As long as I get to play.

...

SLAM: What’s your relationship like with Yao Ming?

GA: We have our NBA relationship. There are only a few players that you can respect and get along with. So somebody like Yao who’s lovable to everyone—I was going through my jersey collection and I realized that I had six Yao jerseys. I thing I got one jersey that had ‘Ming’ on it. It was his first year, and they got his name wrong.

...

SLAM: You’ve sort of had a mini-resurrection of your career over here in China. Even though you missed games with injury, just to see you on the court and playing big minutes, it’s a great thing for the fans.

GA: Yeah, you know, that’s all that it was about. Even this year, in the beginning, I was thinking when I got hurt that this has been going on for the last three years of my career. Some little ticky-tack injuries been keeping me out for long periods of time and I’m getting benched. So when Yao decided that he wasn’t going to cut me, he was going to keep me, I was like, Thank you Lord! I can’t wait ’til I get on the court to show that I can actually play at a high level. So I’m just happy that he gave me the opportunity.

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