Former Washington Wizards star Gilbert Arenas has revealed that he willingly stepped aside when Washington selected John Wall with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2010 NBA Draft, recognizing that the young point guard represented the franchise’s future.
Arenas explained that he had no intention of competing with Wall for leadership of the team, despite being the established veteran and former face of the franchise.
When asked about the potential competition between the two guards, Arenas insisted that he immediately accepted his changing role.
“Oh, no. I gave that, I gave that shit up. ‘Hey, bro. This your team. Here’s the keys. Don’t worry about me.’ I let that be. No, as soon as it came, it was like, ‘You know what? This your team, you the keys. You the future.”
Arenas understood that Washington was entering a new phase and believed challenging Wall for control of the team would only create unnecessary tension.
“I’m just waiting around until they decide to move me and see what they’re going to do.’ I’m not even going to, we’re not even going to sit here and do this battle of young versus the old. I already, I’ve seen that. I’ve seen that in history already. I know how that play out. I know how that play out and it’s not in my favor.”
The three-time NBA All-Star also acknowledged that his injury history had affected his standing within the organization. Even if he outperformed Wall in practice, Arenas believed the franchise would understandably prioritize developing its top draft pick.
“No, no, but he’s drafted for a reason. He’s the number one pick. He’s the number one player in the country. Injury got the black cloud on me. I can’t beat this. There’s no, there’s no matter if I do outwork him and beat him in practice. That’s not the point of it. He’s the future.”
Rather than attempting to maintain his previous position, Arenas wanted Wall to receive the playing time and responsibility necessary to develop into Washington’s next franchise player.
“The future has to play. Period. The future has to learn how to develop. Period. So, I’m not going to stand in that way. I’m not going to stand in the way. If I want to be able to survive in the future, I got to let the future come. So, here you go. Here’s the keys.”
Arenas added that he and fellow veteran Kirk Hinrich were comfortable supporting Wall while allowing him to establish himself as the team’s leader.
“If you want to know how the car work, ask me. But it’s best you learn and find out for yourself and we’ll be here when you need us. That’s why, like, me and Kirk, we’re the vets and it’s like, no, Young Boy’s leading. We had a great time. Like, you know, it was easy. It was easy for me.”
