New and Improved Gilbert Arenas Adopts Distributive Philosophy

It seems like ages ago that Gilbert Arenas was at the top of the league in scoring, playing with the ultimate chip on his shoulder, blogging about the world according to himself and screaming, "HIBACHI!" after sinking yet another game-winning shot.

That version of Arenas is from two years and three knee surgeries ago.

Time has a way of changing people, and no one understands that more now than Arenas. Since tearing his MCL towards the end of the 2006-2007 season, he has been active for just 15 games.

It isn't enough that the Wizards are in the midst of a roster revamp with the addition of Mike Miller and Randy Foye, but the team will also see the return of Brendan Haywood who played in just six games last season.

Tack on the arrival of new coach Flip Saunders, and it would seem that the Wizards are knee deep in rebuild mode.

New players and coach notwithstanding, the Wizards seem poised to finally translate the amount of "on-paper" talent to an exciting product on the court. Arenas is at the center of that translation.

Arenas had established himself as one of the premier scorers in the NBA prior to suffering his initial knee injury. Fans are waiting for him to recapture his swagger from the 2005-2006 season where he registered career highs in minutes, points, and steals per game.

Fans may be disappointed when the regular season begins.

It is impossible to tell whether Arenas' knee injury has had a significant impact on his ability to score the way he used to, but it seems he is taking it upon himself to approach the game in a whole new way.

In his two appearances at the tail end of last season and the first game of the Wizards preseason, Arenas has tallied double digit assists in somewhat limited time. His career average prior to his injury was 5.32 assists per game.

There is very little information to support labeling Arenas as a distributor in his post-surgery days, but it is safe to say he isn't going to be throwing up 63 against Portland anytime soon.

The best part about the potential shift in Arenas' focus is that it is perfect for the team that is being built with and around him. With Arenas healthy, Caron Butler returning, and Antawn Jamison still kicking, the original Big Three for the Wizards will finally be on the court after a long absence in the wake of untimely injuries.

Jamison, Butler, and Arenas will be key to the success of the Wizards, but a strong bench could be what puts the team into the upper echelon of the Eastern Conference.

Miller and Foye will provide depth and solid production, though Miller provides game-breaking scoring potential. Andray Blatche and Nick Young appear to have outgrown their less than professional approach to the game and should be great assets off the bench.

Arenas may be heading into uncharted territory for his career. He has never been a pass first point guard, for better or worse, but perhaps this is the perfect time for him to adopt a new facet to his game.

The Wizards could be in for a major turnaround with all of the new and returning talent they have going their way for the impending 2009-2010 season.