With the fans, that is. It appears that during Gilbert's last trip to Portland, (where he famously predicted he would score 50), the fans sitting courtside were telling Arenas that it wasn't going to happen, and that the Wizards would lose. The ever confident Gilbert would have none of this, and challenged a couple of fans to a little wager:
Arenas said he bet a fan $10 that he would make the winning basket. He missed badly -- throwing up a shot that fell short of the rim -- and finished with only 19 points.
"I owe somebody 10 bucks," Arenas said. "I bet a fan if I had a chance I would make the last shot."
Arenas later elaborated on his nba.com blog, saying that he made $10 bets with two fans during the game and had obtained their e-mail addresses so that he could pay them off. The NBA since has removed the references to the bets from the blog.
I think the prospect of players making $10 bets with fans is completely harmless, and just adds to the overall entertainment value of attending a game in person. I mean, what's cooler than taunting a player and getting a good natured, interactive response like that? At the same time, I see where the league is coming from. They can't have their players openly gambling on any aspect of the actual game; it could call into question the integrity of the competition.
One other note, what's with "removing references to the bets" from Gilbert's blog? I know "athletes gambling" is a touchy subject, but does the NBA really think that deleting items from their website is going to somehow erase this incident from the internet? I think a better way to go would be for the league to drop a disclaimer on their players' blogs, as in "the opinions expressed are not necessarily those of the NBA." That way we can continue to get the inside stories and honest reports we've come to expect from our man Gilbert.
Comments (Page 1 of 1)
You think it's cool to taunt players at games in an attempt to engage them in some mindless back-and-forth exchange? You're an immature moron if you honestly feel that way, sounds like something a 12-year-old would say. That's really your idea of "entertainment value"? Whatever, jackass.
A little angry at life there Jerry? I think this story is completely harmless. Gil is great for the game.