WASHINGTON - SEPTEMBER 28: Javaris Crittenton #8 of the Washington Wizards poses for a portrait during 2009 NBA Media Day at the Verizon Center on September 28, 2009 in Washington, DC. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2009 NBAE (Photo by Ned Dishman/NBAE via Getty Images) Original Filename: 91560602.jpg
Ned Dishman
Gilbert Arenas and Javaris Crittenton will forever be linked by a card game, two unloaded guns, and a note in the Washington Wizards’ locker room, but both players were in fundamentally different positions to deal with the aftermath of their shared experience.
Arenas is a former superstar that once dined with the league’s true elite. He’s also due $80 million over the next four seasons, which makes him both a difficult player to deal and an impossible one to cut. It didn’t make sense for the Wizards to part ways with Arenas even after his various displays of irresponsibility, and now he’s an important part of the roster that will usher in a new era for the Wizards.
Gil is reinventing himself. Or learning from his mistakes. Or showing maturity. Or...something. Regardless, Arenas has a chance to make his narrative whole, and ride out what should be a few more seasons with the Wizards.
Crittenton? He was done in Washington the day he made headlines. Critt has talent, but as an unfocused (in terms of skill), atypical guard without much career production, he wasn’t deemed worth the headache, nor did he have a contract that made him so. So the Wizards waved goodbye after Crittenton served his 38-game suspension, and we sat wondering whether one bizarre incident would destroy Crittenton’s career before it had a chance to truly begin.
It didn’t, at least for now. The Charlotte Bobcats invited Crittenton to training camp with their problematic point guard rotation in mind. D.J. Augustin, who struggled last season, is the starter by default, and his primary backup, Shaun Livingston, is already having trouble staying healthy. Should Crittenton work his way onto Charlotte’s roster, there will be opportunities aplenty for minutes throughout the season, be they with Livingston sidelined or Augustin inconsistent.
Crittenton’s own health is an issue, too. A left ankle injury has hindered Crittenton for some time, in part because of a botched surgery, per Crittenton’s estimation (via the Associated Press):
...Brown also didn’t know if he was healthy, an issue that got little attention because of his legal problems. Crittenton said he had a bone spur in his left ankle at the beginning of last season and underwent surgery. “It didn’t go well,” Crittenton said. “They went in from the wrong way and it didn’t fix it. I had another surgery to actually repair it.”
Instead of being sidelined for few weeks, Crittenton was out for the season.
“A lot of people think I had one surgery and, ‘Oh, it’s taking a long time to heal,’” Crittenton said. “If the first surgery was successful, I would have been ready.”
The 38-game suspension at the end of the season made that moot. It also meant he wasn’t returning to Washington, and Charlotte marks his fourth team in four years. “I do feel like I really haven’t gotten my shot yet,” Crittenton said. “I really wasn’t one of those players who could really learn from watching. But it’s the NBA. This is the decision I chose. I left college early and I just have to learn. There’s no more being babied or anything like that.”
The surgery doesn’t even matter at this point. Crittenton needs to be ready now, because isn’t likely to have many other NBA lifelines.
Sadly, this could be it for Crittenton. His involvement in the Arenas gun incident is just the kind of Wikipedia-worthy trivia that could prematurely terminate his NBA career. Crittenton’s future training camp/tryout opportunities could be very limited, which makes it all the more important that his chance with the Bobcats doesn’t go south. With good coaching and the right system, Critt could be a valuable rotation player. Here’s to hoping that happens in the NBA (and in Charlotte, for that matter, where Larry Brown could really help him), rather than overseas.
