Gilbert Arenas Suspended Indefinitely for Guns, "Subsequent Behavior"

Gilbert Arenas has been suspended indefinitely -- without pay -- by National Basketball Association (NBA) commissioner David Stern for the gun incident in the Washington Wizards locker room and "subsequent behavior." Arenas faces possible expulsion from the NBA as well. Stern announced that the suspension would begin "immediately pending completion of the investigation by the NBA."

According to David Aldridge at NBA.com, Commissioner Stern was willing to allow D.C. authorities to handle the situation until Gilbert Arenas made his fingers into a gun and pretended to shoot his teammates Tuesday evening. With all the bad publicity and Gilbert Arenas going on Twitter protesting his treatment at the hands of the media, David Stern had had enough.

The situation reportedly began on December 19 as an altercation over $25,000 that Arenas supposedly lost to teammate Jarvis Crittendon in a card game. On December 21, Gilbert Arenas allegedly brought four guns into the Washington Wizards locker room and left a note telling Crittendon to pick the gun he wanted. Although it is unclear what was meant by the note, Arenas later said it was a joke. Whatever the intent, Crittendon didn't think it was amusing. Team officials notified authorities and police began an investigation into the incident.

Then the New York Post printed a story alleging that Gilbert Arenas and Jarvis Crittendon had pulled guns on each other in the Wizards locker room. That story has not been corroborated.

Arenas went before a grand jury on Monday and apologized to the Wizards and to the NBA for his "lapse in judgment." He said in a statement that he now knew what he did was wrong, joke or no. "I should not have brought the guns to DC in the first place, and I now realize that there's no such thing as joking around when it comes to guns--even if unloaded."

So how to explain the "shooting" of his teammates with his fingers Tuesday?

For David Stern, there was no rational explanation. He said that Gilbert Arenas actions had led him "to conclude that he is not currently fit to take the court in an NBA game."

Although Arenas' gun display in the Wizards locker room might have been a first, his being suspended for using a firearm is not. Several players over the years have run afoul of the law and the NBA because of their predilection for playing with firearms.

Besides the Arenas case, former New York Nets star Jayson Williams made headlines when he crashed his car in Manhattan. The incident, which netted him a DWI, is just the latest in a series of events that began after the accidental shooting of his limo driver in 2002. Williams had been showing guests one of his shotguns when he snapped the barrels shut, causing the gun to go off. Although Williams was acquitted of the original manslaughter charge, his retrial ended in a plea-deal where he agreed to a three-year sentence on a charge of aggravated assault.

Lonny Baxter of the Charlotte Bobcats pleaded guilty after being caught shipping four guns into the U. S. He was sentenced to 60 days in jail. This occurred after his arrest by the Secret Service in 2006 for discharging a .40 calibre Glock handgun near the White House.

Indiana Pacers' Stephen Jackson, most famous for his role in the infamous Malice in the Palace melee, served a 7-game suspension in 2007 after pleading guilty to a charge of criminal recklessness for discharging a firearm outside an Indianapolis nightclub.

Gilbert Arenas indefinite suspension could ultimately lead to permanent exclusion from playing in the NBA. If so, the Washington Wizards would be free of what is left of the $111 million, five-year contract Arenas signed in 2008.

******

Sources:

SportsIllustrated.cnn.com
NBA.com