Arenas Calls Gun Incident "Misguided Joke"

Washington Wizards star Gilbert Arenas says he took unloaded guns from his locker in a "misguided effort to play a joke" on a teammate.

Arenas released a written statement Monday after meeting with law enforcement officials. And Arenas' lawyer says the player voluntarily met with prosecutors and detectives and answered every question during a two-hour interview.

In his statement, Arenas repeated his earlier assertion that he brought four guns to the Verizon Center to store in his locker in order to get them out of his house and away from his children. He said he mistakenly believed that recent changes in D.C. law made it legal for him to store unloaded guns there.

Arenas said he took the unloaded guns out of his locker on Dec. 21 "in a misguided effort to play a joke on a teammate." He denied threatening or assaulting anyone. The New York Post has reported that Arenas and teammate Javaris Crittenton drew guns on each other.

"Joke or not, I now recognize that what I did was a mistake and was wrong," Arenas said. "I should not have brought the guns to DC in the first place, and I now realize that there's no such thing as joking around when it comes to guns - even if unloaded."

Two officials within the league who have been briefed on the investigation told The Associated Press on Saturday that the incident stemmed from a dispute over card-playing gambling debts and a heated discussion in the locker room.

The other player involved is Javaris Crittenton. His agent, Mark Bartelstein, said earlier Monday that his client did nothing wrong.

It was unclear whether Crittenton also planned to meet with authorities about the incident. His lawyer, Peter White, is on vacation and said he would not be at any meetings Monday or Tuesday.

The version of events that Arenas gave to prosecutors Monday was consistent with what two people with knowledge of the incident told CBSSports.com on Saturday. On Dec. 19, Arenas got into an argument with Crittenton over a card game during the team's flight from Phoenix to D.C. Before practice two days later at Verizon Center, one of the sources said, Arenas placed several firearms on Crittenton's locker chair and indicated that he should "pick one." Crittenton became angry, told Arenas, "Stop your games," and knocked the weapons on the floor, the source said.

Arenas also apologized for his actions in the statement.

"I am very sorry for the effect that my serious lapse in judgment has had on my team, my teammates, the National Basketball Association and its fans," Arenas said. "I want to apologize to everybody for letting them down with my conduct, and I promise to do better in the future."

NBA commissioner David Stern likely will wait until the legal process is complete before handing down penalties, but he could rule on Arenas now since league rules were broken in that instance.

At the NBA's request, the firearms language was bolstered during collective bargaining in 2005. Players are subject to discipline if they bring guns to the arena or practice facility, or even an offsite promotional appearance.

Kenny Smith, a former NBA player and now an NBA analyst for TNT Sports, said on "The Early Show" Monday, "I think it's bad discretion, and it shows just probably a lack of maturity on Gilbert's part, more than anything else. I think he has an idea of about how he said it. The reason he had it there was to take it away from the home, but it's bad judgment and being very immature."

Another concern some have addressed is that certain players might want to carry a gun. Is this an issue about image or is it about safety?

Smith said it's an issue of both.

"You look at a lot of NBA players, if you look at them first, I think they're wealthy young men who are really one degree of separation from their friends, their family members who aren't wealthy," Smith said. "So they still will be in areas around the country that aren't your safest neighborhoods. So their mindset is, 'OK, I'll protect myself or I'll hire security to protect myself,' but I think this is just a case of being immature and not realizing the consequences of what could happen with a gun in the arena."

Smith added,"I don't think Gilbert Arenas is a menacing person at all. I know him, I've met him. But this is just a sign of immaturity."