http://www.sacbee.com/351/story/96166.html
Extra work leads Arenas to stardom
By Sam Amick - Bee Staff Writer
Last Updated 6:23 am PST Thursday, December 21, 2006
Kings equipment manager Rob Pimental had plenty of work to do Wednesday morning, and it seemed his load had just increased with the early arrival of the Washington Wizards.
"Rob said, 'I've got to run (because) Washington's here,' " Kings coach Eric Musselman said. "He came back laughing, saying, 'It wasn't Washington. It was Gilbert Arenas.' I said, 'Yeah, big surprise, huh?' He'll probably be back (at Arco Arena) at 11 o'clock tonight trying to figure out where he can shoot."
Musselman is no stranger to Arenas' work ethic, having coached him at Golden State during the 2002-03 season. The two have been close since orchestrating a 17-game improvement for the Warriors in their one season together before Arenas landed a six-year, $65 million deal from the Wizards in 2003.
But Arenas has since taken his game to new levels, and the latest stop was Sunday night in Los Angeles. Arenas scored a career-high 60 points in a 147-141 overtime win over the Lakers, hitting 17 of 32 shots overall and 5 of 12 three-pointers.
He is third in the league, scoring 29.1 points per game -- not bad for a player selected after his sophomore season out of Arizona in the second round (31st overall) of the 2001 draft.
"He's a special player, amazing offensively," Musselman said.
And one who's renowned for finding motivation wherever he can. He picked his jersey number, 0, to reflect what so many naysayers thought he would amount to -- as in nothing -- and is notorious for a me-against-the-world attitude.
"He'll find some reason to hate the Kings for this game," Musselman said.
Douby do -- Musselman is a stickler for rewarding players who perform well in practice, and rookie Quincy Douby will be the latest beneficiary.
The guard drafted 19th overall from Rutgers in June has played 26 minutes and hit 5 of 14 shots in his seven games this season, but Musselman said he deserves more.
"The one guy who's had real good practices is Quincy," Musselman said. "You reward (players) for doing stuff in practice....
"It's hard. You can't play everybody on your roster, but when a guy starts picking it up and playing extremely well in practice, we need to give Quincy an opportunity."
Martin questionable -- Kings shooting guard Kevin Martin said he'll decide today whether to play tonight. Martin sprained his right ankle Saturday against the Phoenix Suns.
About the writer: The Bee's Sam Amick can be reached at samick@sacbee.com.
Extra work leads Arenas to stardom
By Sam Amick - Bee Staff Writer
Last Updated 6:23 am PST Thursday, December 21, 2006
Kings equipment manager Rob Pimental had plenty of work to do Wednesday morning, and it seemed his load had just increased with the early arrival of the Washington Wizards.
"Rob said, 'I've got to run (because) Washington's here,' " Kings coach Eric Musselman said. "He came back laughing, saying, 'It wasn't Washington. It was Gilbert Arenas.' I said, 'Yeah, big surprise, huh?' He'll probably be back (at Arco Arena) at 11 o'clock tonight trying to figure out where he can shoot."
Musselman is no stranger to Arenas' work ethic, having coached him at Golden State during the 2002-03 season. The two have been close since orchestrating a 17-game improvement for the Warriors in their one season together before Arenas landed a six-year, $65 million deal from the Wizards in 2003.
But Arenas has since taken his game to new levels, and the latest stop was Sunday night in Los Angeles. Arenas scored a career-high 60 points in a 147-141 overtime win over the Lakers, hitting 17 of 32 shots overall and 5 of 12 three-pointers.
He is third in the league, scoring 29.1 points per game -- not bad for a player selected after his sophomore season out of Arizona in the second round (31st overall) of the 2001 draft.
"He's a special player, amazing offensively," Musselman said.
And one who's renowned for finding motivation wherever he can. He picked his jersey number, 0, to reflect what so many naysayers thought he would amount to -- as in nothing -- and is notorious for a me-against-the-world attitude.
"He'll find some reason to hate the Kings for this game," Musselman said.
Douby do -- Musselman is a stickler for rewarding players who perform well in practice, and rookie Quincy Douby will be the latest beneficiary.
The guard drafted 19th overall from Rutgers in June has played 26 minutes and hit 5 of 14 shots in his seven games this season, but Musselman said he deserves more.
"The one guy who's had real good practices is Quincy," Musselman said. "You reward (players) for doing stuff in practice....
"It's hard. You can't play everybody on your roster, but when a guy starts picking it up and playing extremely well in practice, we need to give Quincy an opportunity."
Martin questionable -- Kings shooting guard Kevin Martin said he'll decide today whether to play tonight. Martin sprained his right ankle Saturday against the Phoenix Suns.
About the writer: The Bee's Sam Amick can be reached at samick@sacbee.com.
