I knew something was wrong when I saw him play for all of six minutes 2 1/2 weeks ago on TV when the Washington Wizards took on the Orlando Magic at the Verizon Center. The explosiveness that I've grown accustomed to seeing along with the deadly outside shot of his were missing... It did appear that "Agent Zero" was starting to finally get it back together last week as he tallied 57 points in impressive Wizards wins against the Indiana Pacers and Minnesota Timberwolves... However, Gilbert felt pain after the Timberwolves game and missed the last two games against the Portland Traliblazers and Philadelphia 76ers as a result. Today, Gilbert got the bad news - a torn meniscus and a microfracture on his surgically-repaired left knee. He will miss three months! For the complete story, go to Gilbert's Blog.
Needless to say, this puts a HUGE damper on the Wizards and their high hopes for the 2007 season. After starting the year 0-5, the Wizards have won five straight games. Last year, the Wizards made a nice surge near the end of the season, only to see Gilbert and Caron Butler go down with injuries within games of each other. The Wizards literally limped into the playoffs and were swept in four games by the eventual 2006-07 NBA runner-up Cleveland Cavaliers. One can only hope that Butler and others can pick up the slack and keep the Wizards respectable while their star is down.
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Showing posts with label Gilbert Arenas. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Gilbert Arenas. Show all posts
Wednesday, November 21, 2007
Saturday, November 3, 2007
Wizards Lose Home Opener
Our cable TV provider is giving us a free preview of the NBA League Pass this week, so I've been afforded the opportunity to catch some out of town games that I wouldn't ordinarily see. Of course, I didn't happen to figure that one out until tonight, just as the Washington Wizards had pulled to within a point of the Orlando Magic, 76-75 in their home opener in the Verizon Center. My cousin Melinda happened to be working the game tonight, and I actually got a chance to talk to her while she was there.
The Wizards actually led 67-64 going into the fourth quarter tonight, but just completely folded in the final period, shooting only 20 percent (5-for-25) from the field in losing to the Magic 94-82... From what I saw those final six minutes or so, the Wizards kind of looked like they were VERY rushed. They were forcing shots and committing silly fouls. Most appalling though was the play of Gilbert Arenas. Quite honestly, he just didn't like himself at all out there. That guy who dropped 60 on the Lakers last year in an overtime win? M.I.A. The explosiveness he normally has just isn't there, and his outside shot looks like it's still on summer vacation. Agent Zero made only five of his 15 shots from the field tonight. His surgically repaired right knee is obviously not well. Apparently there is a fluid build-up on the knee which he is soon going to get drained.
There were a couple of bright spots for the Wizards tonight. Caron Butler had a nice night, scoring 23 points and securing nine rebounds. After turning the ball over 15 times in the WIzards first two games, he only gave it away twice tonight... Brendan Haywood scored 10 points and grabbed 16 boards for his third consecutive double-double - the first time in his career he's accomplished that feat.
Coming into the season, this Wizard team was one that was expected to contend for the Eastern Conference championship. If Agent Zero is not 100% or close to 100%, it will be very difficult for the Wizards to live up to their pre-season billing. One can only help that Gilbert will soon recover from this injury and start playing like the all-star he is!
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The Wizards actually led 67-64 going into the fourth quarter tonight, but just completely folded in the final period, shooting only 20 percent (5-for-25) from the field in losing to the Magic 94-82... From what I saw those final six minutes or so, the Wizards kind of looked like they were VERY rushed. They were forcing shots and committing silly fouls. Most appalling though was the play of Gilbert Arenas. Quite honestly, he just didn't like himself at all out there. That guy who dropped 60 on the Lakers last year in an overtime win? M.I.A. The explosiveness he normally has just isn't there, and his outside shot looks like it's still on summer vacation. Agent Zero made only five of his 15 shots from the field tonight. His surgically repaired right knee is obviously not well. Apparently there is a fluid build-up on the knee which he is soon going to get drained.
There were a couple of bright spots for the Wizards tonight. Caron Butler had a nice night, scoring 23 points and securing nine rebounds. After turning the ball over 15 times in the WIzards first two games, he only gave it away twice tonight... Brendan Haywood scored 10 points and grabbed 16 boards for his third consecutive double-double - the first time in his career he's accomplished that feat.
Coming into the season, this Wizard team was one that was expected to contend for the Eastern Conference championship. If Agent Zero is not 100% or close to 100%, it will be very difficult for the Wizards to live up to their pre-season billing. One can only help that Gilbert will soon recover from this injury and start playing like the all-star he is!
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