Arenas Settles Gambling Debt the Wrong Way

Tuesday, January 05, 2010 at 1:13 PM
Written by Daniel O

Sure, we doubted the logic of the 6-year, $111 million deal the Washington Wizards signed with their 3-time NBA All Star guard Gilbert Arenas. But did we ever think it would come to this?!

The New York Post reported first of Arenas' alleged showdown with Washington Wizards teammate Javaris Crittenton in the Wizards locker room on December 21. That was when the guard allegedly pulled out 3 (three!) firearms he had stored unloaded in his locker, challenging Crittenton to settle a debt they had that way. The debt of reportedly $25,000 results from card games the players played between them.

These are the Wizards - same team known as the Bullets (until 1997).

In on-and-off comments since the story broke, Arenas referred to the incident as a joke, or horseplay gone wrong. "I'm a goof-ball and that's what I am," Arenas has told the media recently.

But a joke that might cost him five years in prison and/or a $5,000 fine - the maximum sentence for carrying an unlicensed or concealed gun in Washington, DC, where gin laws are especially strict. He's also facing a penalty on behalf of NBA commissioner David Stern. And that deal is at risk too.