Gilbert Arenas, the former NBA star, recently opened up about the infamous locker room gun incident that shook the basketball world. On the Straight Game Podcast with Mike Bibby, Arenas reflected on the details of the event that led to his suspension in 2010.
When asked how many guns he had brought into the Washington Wizards’ locker room, Arenas didn’t hesitate. “How many guns did I bring? Four. I had the gold Desert Eagle, and then I had a Smith & Wesson .500,” Arenas said, via HoopsHype.
The Desert Eagle, a popular but heavy handgun, was gold-plated. Arenas also revealed the Smith & Wesson .500, a powerful revolver. “Only Shaq could shoot that one,” Arenas joked, referencing the sheer power of the gun. “It was a revolver—a Dirty Harry gun. There’s no way in hell he was going to pick that one up.”
Arenas clarified that the guns were not meant for harm but to make a statement. “My thought was simple: They don’t sell bullets in D.C., and he lived in Virginia,” Arenas explained. “The only gun store is in Maryland. Was he really going to go through all that just to get bullets?”
The incident stemmed from a heated argument between Arenas and then-teammate Javaris Crittenton over a gambling dispute. Arenas described the situation as a misunderstanding, saying, “It wasn’t malicious. People act like I was trying to start something, but I wasn’t. I just wanted to prove a point.”
Arenas’s guns—both unloaded—were part of what he described as a locker room “show of force” rather than an actual threat. “I had a 50-caliber Desert Eagle and a Dirty Harry revolver, both with no bullets,” Arenas emphasized.
Despite the guns being unloaded, the incident became a media firestorm. Arenas explained that the coverage exaggerated the situation. “The media made it sound crazy, but it wasn’t like that. It was just locker room stuff,” he said.
The aftermath led to Arenas being suspended for the remainder of the 2009-10 NBA season. The suspension marked a significant turning point in his career, and it remains one of the most controversial incidents in recent NBA history.
