Gilbert Arenas suspended over guns in locker room
NEW YORK — National Basketball Association commissioner David Stern suspended Gilbert Arenas indefinitely Wednesday, saying the Washington Wizards playmaker “is not currently fit to take the court.”
Arenas ran afoul of NBA rules when he brought guns to the Wizards arena.
He said he was storing unloaded weapons in a container in his locker to keep them away from his children at home, but Arenas and the league were engulfed in controversy when The New York Post reported Arenas and a teammate had drawn guns on each other in a December incident.
Arenas has insisted that account was overblown, but the incident remains under investigation by law enforcement authorities.
Stern said in a statement that Arenas’ actions will “ultimately result in a substantial suspension, and perhaps worse.”
“The possession of firearms by an NBA player in an NBA arena is a matter of the utmost concern to us,” Stern said.
The commissioner said he first planned to refrain from taking action because of the pending criminal investigation, which includes a grand jury sitting in the District of Columbia.
But Stern indicated that Arenas’ behavior had prompted him to take immediate action.
“Although it is clear that the actions of Mr. Arenas will ultimately result in a substantial suspension, and perhaps worse, his ongoing conduct has led me to conclude that he is not currently fit to take the court in an NBA game,” Stern said. “Accordingly, I am suspending Mr. Arenas indefinitely, without pay, effective immediately pending the completion of the investigation by the NBA.”
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