Hibachi King

Hello sports fans! For my first blog post I decided to verbalize a recurring argument between me and a friend. The argument arrived during the 2006-2007 NBA regular season and still continues today. The big question is if the game came down to the last shot, which superstar would you like taking the last shot, LeBron James or Gilbert Arenas. I could only think of one word to sum up my feelings, “HIBACHI!!!”

Now don’t get me wrong King James is clearly the more talented overall and I would build my franchise around him instead of any other player. But James’ game seems to implode down the stretch of games while Arenas’ game explodes. While Gilbert turns around while the ball that will decide the game is still in the air, James misses free throws that will tie the game.

Yes I am aware of the ridiculous game 5 performance in the conference final, yet I refuse to drink the kool-aid. James bombed down the stretch of the first two games in such a prolific way that I do not know what to expect from him is the last minute of a game. (Just a note, I think James made the right play by throwing the ball to Marshall in game 1)


And down the stretch of a game is there anyone who plays with more intensity and confidence than Agent Zero? He knows that if he has the ball and Washington has the last shot to win the game, they are going to win. He doesn’t doubt it, he doesn’t question it, he just goes out and makes it happen. Whether he wins or loses his demeanor remains the same and that is why I would like him to take the final shot. I think that LeBron’s confidence gets hurt when he can’t single handedly win the game for the Cavs. And although he made great strides in that during this post season, I still think that Arenas is light years ahead of him.


Now granted I love players that play with a chip on their shoulder, and there aren’t many who carry a bigger one than Arenas. My favourite is him wanting to go back to college to drop 80 on Krzyzewski. I think that Arenas walks a fine line that is between chip on the shoulder and bad attitude. Another example of a player who plays with “the chip”, Denver Broncos wide receiver, Rod Smith, has a big a chip as there is out there. And someone who crosses the line is a guy like Barry Bonds. He is that end of the spectrum, but that is a subject for another post.

What separates the man with too many nicknames from guys like Bonds is that he is so wonderfully weird. His quirks are well documented and even they have a cool nickname, "Gilbertology".