Kori Ellis
01-14-2007, 02:25 AM
Buck Harvey: Without Spurs, Arenas got to be himself
Web Posted: 01/14/2007 12:54 AM CST
http://www.mysanantonio.com/sports/basketball/nba/spurs/stories/MYSA011407.01C.COL.BKNharvey.spurs.359eea6.html
San Antonio Express-News
Gilbert Arenas can remember which game it was during his rookie season (No. 42) and whom it was against (the Spurs). That was the first time he ever started in the NBA.
He also remembers something else that night. He went to a fellow rookie for advice. Tony Parker.
"We didn't even know each other," said Arenas, who spent his first two seasons with Golden State. "But since he was starting, and I'm looking at him like he's a starting point guard, I asked him, as a point guard, how do you determine when you score?"
Arenas likes the story. There are no signs as he tells it that he just went 6 of 20 with a sore shoulder and lost on the road.
"So Tony says, 'In the halfcourt I pass it to Tim Duncan and David Robinson. On a fast break I'm faster than them, so I hurry up and try to beat them down the court.'"
Parker would refine that strategy in the years to come, and Arenas would figure out a few things, too. Today he determines he will score often.
But so much of their lives — from a pending wedding to swag fame — is a result of that time. Had the Spurs opted for Arenas in the draft instead, for example, would either have been what they are today?
When it comes to his own career, Arenas isn't sure. He says he would have fit in nicely in San Antonio — without changing much.
"With my style of play," he said, "you couldn't double Tim. I'd open up a lot of things because of my range. I penetrate, I'm fast and stronger.
"To me, it looks like, 'Woo, if he came here, what would it be?'"
He also says the argument is empty because of what Parker has done. "If you win two championships," he said, "you can't complain."
The Spurs never have. They had the No. 28 pick in the 2001 draft, and, after considerable debate, Parker was their guy.
Arenas knows why. "They wanted a pure point guard," he said.
They also wanted someone they understood. They talked to Parker twice before the draft, once during a visit and workout. Arenas chose not to work out for the Spurs because he thought he would be drafted higher.
Maybe these are the reasons he fell to No. 31 to the Warriors, or maybe it was simply scouting. Teams are often afraid of 6-foot-2 shooters without a lot of point-guard instincts.
Either way, within a few months both were starting. Parker was trying to beat his 7-footers down the floor, and Arenas was showing the skills that would turn him into a 30-point scorer.
Parker has taken to this city and system, and Saturday night was another illustration. He traveled a couple of times in a kind of sleep walk, but he also got after Arenas on defense.
Parker's 13 points won't make any highlight films, but his 10 rebounds and half-dozen assists told of a complete game.
If Parker does this for another 10 years, both he and the Spurs will be delighted.
Arenas wouldn't have liked the life. He's a character, albeit a smart, friendly one. He's notorious for once showering in his uniform, and this month he showered himself with a $1million birthday party. When he's feeling good, he often blurts out "hibachi" after releasing a jumper.
Nothing he did Saturday night gave any indication he was heating up. Officiating didn't help him, but there was never a sense he was himself. His coach was far crazier than he was; Eddie Jordan stayed on the court longer than a couple of Spurs played.
Arenas' right shoulder has been bothering him, and then there was a game the night before in Oklahoma City. Give him some rest, and he'll be putting another 60 points on somebody, and talking about his swagger, which the Wizards call "swag."
"Tonight," he said, "there was no 'g' in the swag."
And had he been a Spur? He would have been out of place. Arenas has called this season "The Takeover," as if launching his own public-relations campaign, and that leads to another Parker story.
As young point guards do, Parker once asked Spurs coach Gregg Popovich when he should take over a game. Popovich emphatically told him never.
That's why a Spurs official, when wondering what would have happened if the 2001 draft had gone differently, said Saturday, "I'm not sure Hibachi and Pop would have gone together."
It wouldn't have been good for either. Some guys need a system. Some guys swag.
[email protected]
Web Posted: 01/14/2007 12:54 AM CST
http://www.mysanantonio.com/sports/basketball/nba/spurs/stories/MYSA011407.01C.COL.BKNharvey.spurs.359eea6.html
San Antonio Express-News
Gilbert Arenas can remember which game it was during his rookie season (No. 42) and whom it was against (the Spurs). That was the first time he ever started in the NBA.
He also remembers something else that night. He went to a fellow rookie for advice. Tony Parker.
"We didn't even know each other," said Arenas, who spent his first two seasons with Golden State. "But since he was starting, and I'm looking at him like he's a starting point guard, I asked him, as a point guard, how do you determine when you score?"
Arenas likes the story. There are no signs as he tells it that he just went 6 of 20 with a sore shoulder and lost on the road.
"So Tony says, 'In the halfcourt I pass it to Tim Duncan and David Robinson. On a fast break I'm faster than them, so I hurry up and try to beat them down the court.'"
Parker would refine that strategy in the years to come, and Arenas would figure out a few things, too. Today he determines he will score often.
But so much of their lives — from a pending wedding to swag fame — is a result of that time. Had the Spurs opted for Arenas in the draft instead, for example, would either have been what they are today?
When it comes to his own career, Arenas isn't sure. He says he would have fit in nicely in San Antonio — without changing much.
"With my style of play," he said, "you couldn't double Tim. I'd open up a lot of things because of my range. I penetrate, I'm fast and stronger.
"To me, it looks like, 'Woo, if he came here, what would it be?'"
He also says the argument is empty because of what Parker has done. "If you win two championships," he said, "you can't complain."
The Spurs never have. They had the No. 28 pick in the 2001 draft, and, after considerable debate, Parker was their guy.
Arenas knows why. "They wanted a pure point guard," he said.
They also wanted someone they understood. They talked to Parker twice before the draft, once during a visit and workout. Arenas chose not to work out for the Spurs because he thought he would be drafted higher.
Maybe these are the reasons he fell to No. 31 to the Warriors, or maybe it was simply scouting. Teams are often afraid of 6-foot-2 shooters without a lot of point-guard instincts.
Either way, within a few months both were starting. Parker was trying to beat his 7-footers down the floor, and Arenas was showing the skills that would turn him into a 30-point scorer.
Parker has taken to this city and system, and Saturday night was another illustration. He traveled a couple of times in a kind of sleep walk, but he also got after Arenas on defense.
Parker's 13 points won't make any highlight films, but his 10 rebounds and half-dozen assists told of a complete game.
If Parker does this for another 10 years, both he and the Spurs will be delighted.
Arenas wouldn't have liked the life. He's a character, albeit a smart, friendly one. He's notorious for once showering in his uniform, and this month he showered himself with a $1million birthday party. When he's feeling good, he often blurts out "hibachi" after releasing a jumper.
Nothing he did Saturday night gave any indication he was heating up. Officiating didn't help him, but there was never a sense he was himself. His coach was far crazier than he was; Eddie Jordan stayed on the court longer than a couple of Spurs played.
Arenas' right shoulder has been bothering him, and then there was a game the night before in Oklahoma City. Give him some rest, and he'll be putting another 60 points on somebody, and talking about his swagger, which the Wizards call "swag."
"Tonight," he said, "there was no 'g' in the swag."
And had he been a Spur? He would have been out of place. Arenas has called this season "The Takeover," as if launching his own public-relations campaign, and that leads to another Parker story.
As young point guards do, Parker once asked Spurs coach Gregg Popovich when he should take over a game. Popovich emphatically told him never.
That's why a Spurs official, when wondering what would have happened if the 2001 draft had gone differently, said Saturday, "I'm not sure Hibachi and Pop would have gone together."
It wouldn't have been good for either. Some guys need a system. Some guys swag.
[email protected]