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Doctors Keep Arenas Benched, Team Wins
"I might as well wait until I'm 100 percent, and that's not going to be until next year," Gilbert Arenas said.
(By Ned Dishman -- Nbae Via Getty Images)
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Perhaps one of the most impressive aspects of the victory was that the Wizards, who have been considered to be more of a finesse team in recent seasons, matched the Pistons physically.
The Pistons held a 39-33 rebounding edge but the Wizards held a 50-20 advantage in points in the paint and earned five more free throw attempts. Haywood finished with 16 points on 6-of-8 shooting and forward Darius Songaila came off the bench to add 10 points on 5-of-6 shooting.
"It was a very physical game and we played a very smart game," Jordan said. "We had some turnovers there and plays we could have executed better but for the most part we had the proper temperament and the proper personality. Against a team like that, you have to keep your focus."
That focus will be challenged during a five-game road trip that begins tomorrow night at Portland. The trip is the team's longest of the season and the last time the Wizards went west, they finished 1-3 with losses to Denver, Phoenix and Golden State and a last-second win over the Clippers in Los Angeles.
Arenas will make the trip and continue to participate in practices and work on his knee during individual workouts with the athletic training staff. Arenas has expressed concern that another injury could cost him this summer when he plans on opting out of the final season of his contract to become an unrestricted free agent but said he has recently started to feel more confident about coming back.
"I was watching a movie [Saturday] and it had a great quote that got me thinking," Arenas said. "It was something like 'don't let fear control you.' Mentally, I've been afraid of going back out there but it made me realize that I can't be scared anymore. I feel good, the knee feels good and I want to play."
Jordan understands and respects his star player's desire to return.
"The future has a whole lot of great things for him but that being said, he's still trying to get something done in the near future," Jordan said. "He wants to play and we all have to give him a lot of credit for wanting to play. Last week. This week. Tomorrow. He is not an NBA player who is just sitting on his laurels waiting for July 1. He wants to play basketball and that's a good, good thing."
