Washington Wizards legend Gilbert Arenas is perhaps as well known for his antics off the court as his dominance on it. He was a great player during his prime, being named to the All-Star squad for three straight years, and there's no denying that he once was one of the best point guards in the entire league.
It is also a known fact, however, that controversy never left the side of the former Arizona standout. Simply put, he was, and perhaps remains to be unlike any other NBA player we've seen before. Read on below to see why as we present some of the craziest moments in Arenas' well-documented rise and fall.
Big Baller
According to Basketball Reference, Arenas earned a total of $163 million during his 14-year career in the league between 2001 and 2014. This included a massive $111 million max deal with the Wizards which he signed in 2008. Needless to say, the Tampa, Florida native was pretty loaded, and he certainly had a lavish lifestyle to boot.
In a 2013 article posted by Business Insider, some of Arenas' most ridiculous spending sprees were detailed. For starters, he spent $3.5 million he spent to purchase his mansion, for his which paid an additional $100,000 for landscaping. The home had seven bedrooms and 10 baths, so housekeeping reportedly cost $5,000 a month.
Arenas loved his cars. So much so, he spent close to $700 regularly just to get them washed.
The 6-foot-3 guard was a known gambler (more on this later) and was a regular in more than a few casinos. According to the report, Arenas would spend tens of thousands of dollars during random casino trips. He also preferred to break down his cash to $5 bills, so just imagine how high his stacks were.
Marine Life Enthusiast
Talking about his multi-million dollar mansion, one of the most memorable features of the same was his infamous pet sharks. Obviously, Arenas was not the type to settle for a simple fish tank — that just wasn't in his alley. So instead, he had a full-blown shark tank installed inside his own house.
The initial cost of having the tank built as well as the amount of money he spent on purchasing the actual sharks cost him a fortune, but maintaining it was a whole different story. Arenas reportedly spent close to $80,000 a year for maintenance costs of this extravagant and totally unnecessary luxury. On a monthly basis, the caretaker charged Arenas $1,500 a month to take of his pets, to ensure that the tank was in tip top condition, and of course, feed them — to the tune of another $5,000 a month.
The Prankster
Pranks are nothing new in the NBA. To this very day, rookies are almost always on the receiving end of what has become a widely-accepted form of (mostly) harmless initiation. The Wizards point guard wasn't only a great basketball player, but he was also an extraordinary prankster as well. By extraordinary we mean that he took it to another level.
Previously, former NBA swingman Nick Young shared the moment he realized how crazy Arenas was after the latter pretty much threw away $1,000 worth of Young's own money.
However, that was petty compared to what Arenas would do to former Wizards teammate Andray Blatche. The story goes that Blatche, a known prankster himself, threw Arenas' clothes into the Jacuzzi as an act of revenge after mistakenly thinking that it was Arenas who cut up his suit (according to Arenas it was actually DeShawn Stevenson and Antonio Daniels who were the true culprits).
Arenas would not be outdone, and for his part, Blatche would soon learn that with Arenas, there were no limits. How did Arenas retaliate? He literally took a dump in Blatche's shoes.
The Gun Incident
There's no doubt that the infamous moment of Arenas' career was the tie he brought unloaded guns into the Wizards locker room.
According to reports, it all started with a card game. Arenas and former teammates Javaris Crittenton and JaVale McGee were engaged in a heated, high-stakes card game. One thing led to another, and at one point, threats were carried out about Crittenton shooting Arenas. Days later, both men brought their own weapons to the locker room. The league later found out, and took action.
To make matters worse, Arenas and his teammates even made a mockery of the incident during one of their pregame routines. Arenas stood in the middle surrounded by his teammates as he began shooting them one by one with his fingers. This turned out to be the last straw, with the league suspending Arenas indefinitely soon after. He ended up being suspended for the rest of the season, and while he was able to return the following season, he was never really able to recover. He retired from the NBA in 2012 — two years after the incident — at just 30 years of age.
This tale remains to be one of the most controversial moments in NBA history.
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