Former University of Arizona star Gilbert Arenas opened up in a recent interview with SI.com's Sam Amick about everything from his fall from superstardom, to his gun charge while playing with the Washington Wizards, to his current mindset as he looks towards a return to an NBA team.
Arenas had closed off all communication with the media and the outside world, culminating in him deleting his often hilarious, sometimes odd Twitter account, "AgentZeroShow", last September. Since then, Arenas has focused on himself, getting himself back into shape and healthy, as well as trying to find the spirit that led to him being one of the most explosive scorers in the NBA for a three-year span while playing for the Washington Wizards.
"Reflecting. You just reflect on your basketball career and see how far you came. I watch a lot of game tape of last year in Washington and finishing up in Orlando. I just realized even going back to training camp it was basically a spiral down. I didn't have it anymore. I didn't have the spirit. I guess somewhere that summer, or somewhere the season before that, I lost the spirit to play, and that's what showed last year. I was depressed.
"When something drastic happens in our life, one person goes and hides and doesn't want to be seen. That's what I did. [Others] want to stand up and fight and think they're tough. Like if someone gets shot, you're either scared of guns or think you're Superman. In my situation, I wanted to hide. I didn't want to be seen anymore."
Arenas was very candid in his comments and looks to be in the right frame of mind to continue what was once one of the more entertaining careers in the NBA. Maybe one day, his fans can get another late glimpse of what used to make him great.
Only time will tell.