Washington Wizards Made All The Right Moves, Save For Gilbert Arenas

Just days after the Wizards completed trades that sent Caron Butler, Antawn Jamison, and Brendan Haywood elsewhere, GM Ernie Grunfeld has failed to fully answer the nagging question on everyone's mind.

What does Washington plan on doing with Gilbert Arenas?

In several interviews, Grunfeld has highlighted that Arenas is still under contract for four years with the team and that he is free to come back once his suspension is over.

"Gilbert is still one of the top players in this league. He’s under contract and he’s going to be with us. He’s part of this organization" Grunfeld said. "If he wants to play, this is the place where he’s going to play."

For a team that has shown every intention to rebuild, is Arenas the right player to rebuild around?

Arenas, to his credit, can be an explosive scorer and was showing improvement with his passing. It was only a few years ago that he was hitting game winners left and right, pouring in 30, 40, and even 50 point games.

What he could never quite crack was the leadership quality. The locker room belonged to Jamison.

So, other than his lack of leadership, what would be so bad about welcoming him back?

Allowing Arenas to return after his suspension is placing greater value on a name than the organization. Jamison and Butler were the ones carrying the Wizards for the two years Arenas was out, and the entire time it was always about when Arenas would be healthy again.

Part of that blame belongs to the media for highlighting Arenas instead of the others, but that is precisely the problem. No matter what the Wizards go through, it will always fall to Arenas to give the explanation.

Recent history has shown that he will never accept blame for his own shortcomings, and that is a selfish quality.

To be a leader, a player must be able to defer the success of his team to his teammates and should take it upon himself to shoulder the blame for the team's shortcomings.

Arenas was content to point the finger at his teammates for not adjusting their game as he had. After vowing against airing his grievances to the media, he did just that.

The Wizards do not need to taint their fresh start with an egomaniac like Arenas.

Perhaps egomaniac is a bit harsh, but it isn't far from the truth. Arenas created and was allowed to create the Agent Zero caricature, and it ultimately led to the locker room incident he is currently suspended for.

How often do marquee players in any sport incur felony gun charges only to have their spot on the team held for them?

Washington looked like it was moving on, and Grunfeld had to leave a tattered bridge across the gap between the past and the future. A bridge that cost $111 million and an organization's reputation.

A brief glimpse of a bright future is once again lost under the darkness of poor management.

Let us not forget that it was Grunfeld that assembled the bevy of talent that was supposed to lead the Wizards to the finals. He paid out the nose for the trio of Butler, Jamison, and Arenas and the player costing the most but giving the least is the one he decides deserves a fair shake.

For shame Ernie, for shame.

I was on the verge of applauding Grunfeld for his swift action in purging the Wizards of all of the stale pieces that comprised its whole. But it was Grunfeld that dug the hole in the first place.

Applause denied.

He may have an impressive resume from his time with the Knicks and Bucks, but everything these days is all about what have you done for me lately?

It is sometimes difficult to overlook all the bad to see the good that has come out of it. Granted, the Wizards have been and will be bad for a few years to come. It is up to Grunfeld and whatever entity takes over future ownership to right the wrongs of the past.

In that regard, perhaps Grunfeld has earned a pat on the back, though his work is far from over.

Over the coming months, the Wizards will be in evaluation mode as their playoff hopes are slim to none. New additions like Josh Howard, Al Thornton, and James Singleton have already shown their worth in three games with the team.

Tenured players like Andray Blatche and JaVale McGee are showing promise with the increase in their minutes.

Since the trade deadline, the Wizards are 2-1 and have seen improvements in second chance scoring and defensive effort.

With the current roster, the Wizards are a promising young bunch. But it is going to take more than what they have now to propel them towards bigger and better things.

After making the moves to clear cap space and remove the stale pieces, no matter the initial intent, the Wizards need a plan moving forward. The uncertainty surrounding Arenas makes that nearly impossible because no one knows if he will be a factor in the team's future.

Who knows how many of the new players will be kept around next season? Some of them have certainly earned consideration since their arrival, but what else can they do but play the game when it is not up to them to decide if they stay or go?

The Wizards are a team full of uncertainty moving forward.

If it is truly Grunfeld's intent to start the Wizards on a path of rebuilding, it would be wise to take the idea all the way and part ways with his pet project Arenas.

I think Arenas can be a good player in the NBA. I'm just not so sure that his path follows the path Washington is on.