You hopefully have already seen my story on the conclusion of the Wizards season tonight, be it in the print edition or online. It includes a timeline of crazy events that have happened over the last seven months. But there are always more to include.
Here’s the full list of what I originally tried to get into the print edition. Feel free to comment with more if you’ve got them:
Wizards 2009-10 timetable
Aug. 2009 – “People shouldn’t be scared of mentioning championship.” – Caron Butler, prior to a team-sponsored trip to China.
Sept. 28, 2009 – Wizards Media Day – “I’m done being the entertainer. I just wanna play basketball.” – Gilbert Arenas, who promises no more Hibachi, no more Agent Zero, no blogging or antics. He then goes on a self-imposed media boycott that ends a couple weeks later after the team gets fined.
Oct. 6 – After missing most of two seasons with a knee injury, Arenas is supposed to start the preseason playing 8-10 minutes. Instead, he goes for 24 against Memphis.
Oct. 14 – Antawn Jamison suffers a shoulder injury in a preseason game against Cleveland that forces him to miss the first nine games of the regular season. By the time he returns, the Wizards are 2-7. By the second week in November, Butler and Mike Miller had also missed games due to injury.
Nov. 2 – “Ain’t nothing to do in Cleveland. You been there?” – DeShawn Stevenson, on his rivalry with LeBron James and the Cavaliers.
Nov. 5 – Arenas’s explanation for what happened with 15 seconds left against Miami, when instead of taking a three-pointer he decided to feed Brendan Haywood for a failed alley oop. “Obviously, it hit the rim,” said Arenas, who was in full mope but reluctantly spoke with the media. “It’s not rocket scientist.”
Nov. 23 – Arenas calls out Butler : “Most of us feel confident in each other on the floor, and there are a few that don’t.” Why is that? “I have no idea. But for the most part, we all get along. There are about 15 players on the team? 14 get along.”
Nov. 24 – Wizards owner Abe Pollin passes away hours before Washington takes on Philadelphia and former head coach Eddie Jordan. Jordan says after the Wizards 108-107 win that Pollin’s spirit made Lou Williams’s potential game-winner rim out.
Dec. 10 – Down two points to Boston with 27 seconds remaining, Arenas misses a pair of game-tying free throws. Two nights later, he misses another two with Washington up by one against Indianapolis, allowing Mike Dunleavy to clinch the Pacers’ win at the line.
Dec. 21 – Two days after returning from a four-game road swing out West, Arenas and Javaris Crittenton have their infamous gun incident in the Wizards locker room before practice.
Dec. 22 – Wizards head coach Flip Saunders pulls his entire starting lineup in the third quarter before eventually beating Philadelphia at home.
Dec. 29 – “This team needs a mindset change… We could’ve taken five guys out of this room and they would’ve had a chance… Until they score on you and it hurts, we’re kidding ourselves.” – Saunders after a loss to Oklahoma City.
Jan. 2, 2010 – “If you know me, and you’ve been here, I’ve never did anything violent. Everything I do, it’s funny. Well, it’s funny to me.” – Arenas speaks about the gun incident after a 97-86 loss to San Antonio.
Jan. 5 – In a pregame routine, Arenas pantomimes shooting his teammates with his fingers as guns.
Jan. 6 – NBA commissioner David Stern suspends Arenas indefinitely, with a statement that reads, “His ongoing conduct has led me to conclude that he is not currently fit to take the court in an NBA game.”
Jan. 7 – A massive Arenas banner outside the Verizon Center comes down. The building is purged of nearly all mentions of the player. Arenas also is eventually dropped by his primary sponsor, Adidas.
Jan. 10 – Andray Blatche takes zero shots and throws a fit on the Wizards bench, including the response to a trainer afterward, “Do I look like I care about my knee?” He is suspended the next game.
Jan. 15 – Arenas pleads guilty to one felony count of carrying a pistol without a license.
Jan. 25 – Crittenton pleads guilty to a misdemeanor count of possessing an unregistered firearm.
Jan. 25 – Stern suspends Arenas and Crittenton for the remainder of the NBA season.
Feb. 15 – The Wizards trade Butler, Haywood, and Stevenson to Dallas for Josh Howard, Drew Gooden, James Singleton and Quinton Ross. Gooden never plays in a game and gets traded two days later.
Feb. 17 – One hour before a game against Minnesota, a three-way trade with the Clippers and Cavaliers sends Jamison to Cleveland and nets Al Thornton and Zydrunas Ilgauskas. Big Z never plays in a game, eventually buying out his contract.
Feb. 22 – Howard suffers a season-ending left knee injury.
Mar. 3-30 – The Wizards lose a franchise-record 16 games in a row.
Mar. 23 – Blatche, who averages 22.0 points, 8.3 rebounds, and 3.6 assists after the All-Star break, is benched after seven minutes vs. Charlotte and refuses to re-enter the game. Saunders threatens to suspend him the next night but does not.
Mar. 26 – Arenas is sentenced 30 days in a halfway house, two years probation, $5,000 fine, and 400 hours community service.
Apr. 4 – Blatche falls one rebound short of his first career double-double. Since mid-February, he’s registered a career-high 36 points (at New Jersey, Feb. 28), a career-high 18 rebounds (vs. New York, Feb. 26), and a career-high 13 assists (vs. Chicago, Apr. 2).
Apr. 6 – JaVale McGee posts new career highs of 25 points and 15 rebounds off the bench in a win over Golden State.
Apr. 9 – Three years removed from a horrific knee injury, Shaun Livingston scores career-high 25 points in a win at Boston.
Apr. 9 – Arenas begins serving his sentence in Montgomery County.
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