Washington
Philip Maymin
Basketball News Services
Gilbert Arenas and Antawn Jamison are looking forward to being the first Washington All-Star duo in nearly two decades, and they are already proud of being part of the best franchise record in more than two and a half decades. While both are first-time All-Stars, Arenas is the first in his 2001 draft class to be so honored, ahead of the 30 players picked before him.
Some of those players include Kwame Brown, Pau Gasol, Eddy Curry, Tyson Chandler, Jason Richardson, Richard Jefferson, Zach Randolph, and Tony Parker. Not a single one of them has been invited to the All-Star game except Arenas.
Arenas told coach Eddie Jordan he is looking to bring back some hardware from the trip, despite coming off the bench and despite going against a seemingly more talented Western Conference lineup. But his promises are not without reason: the last time Arenas participated in the All-Star weekend was the Rookie-Sophomore challenge in 2003. He did walk away with the MVP award.
He's also won the league's Most Improved Player award. So he has a place to put all his trophies. Now it's just a matter of going out there and proving everyone wrong all over again.
NEXT GAME
The rest of the Wizards (30-22, second in the Southeast) will watch Antawn Jamison and Gilbert Arenas participate in the All-Star game and then will re-join their leaders back in Washington on Wednesday, February 23rd, as they entertain the Memphis Grizzlies (30-23, fourth in the Southwest). The game starts at 7:00pm and will be broadcast on CSN and NBA League Pass.
TEAM NOTES
Wizards Magazine recently got together with Gilbert Arenas and Antawn Jamison to get their thoughts on the season and their upcoming appearances as first-time All-Stars in Denver.
Arenas Interview: Part 1| Part 2Jamison Interview: Part 1| Part 2
WASHINGTON WIZARDS VIDEO GAME TOURNAMENT: SATURDAY, APRIL 9, 2005. Ticket to the Tournament includes admission to the Wizards vs. Philadelphia 76ers game that evening!!! * Winner will receive a NEW PlayStation 2 autographed by Wizards’ guard JUAN DIXON PLUS the chance to compete against JUAN DIXON in a game of EA Sports™ NBA Live 2005.
INJURY UPDATE
Samaki Walker(back),Larry Hughes(thumb),Kwame Brown (ankle) are all on the injured list.Juan Dixon(ankle) is out 2-3 weeks.
Patrick Hruby ofThe Washington Timeswrites: Senior is a cutup. Junior is a clown. Senior worked the late shift. Junior works out in the middle of the night. Senior broke his son's finger in a friendly " ahem! " game of one-on-one. Junior got tossed from a Wizards game while sitting on the bench ... in street clothes. In short, Arenas has more in common with his dad than he cares to admit."Nah," he says. "I'm my own man." Maybe so. But come this weekend's NBA All-Star Game, Arenas Sr. will be in Denver, watching his son " the boy he raised as a single father, the 23-year-old rising star who has helped the Wizards to their best start (30-22) in what seems like forever.
Michael Lee ofThe Washington Postwrites: Before Gilbert Arenas and Antawn Jamison left the visitors' locker room in Houston on Tuesday night, Washington Wizards Coach Eddie Jordan held up his hands to stop his all-stars and made one request regarding the All-Star Game on Sunday. "Just don't turn it into a street ball game," Jordan said with the look of a concerned father."Okay, Coach," Jamison said before laughing. "Don't worry, Coach, we're not going to embarrass you," Arenas said. "I'm going to try to come back with that trophy."