As you probably know, Gilbert grew up without his mother so his father, Gilbert Sr., played a vital role in instilling the work ethic Gilbert has today.  Just in case you forgot how the story goes, here’s the beginning:

Arenas’s “uniqueness” begins with his unorthodox upbringing. He was raised by a single father who gained custody of his son shortly before Arenas turned 3. (He has seen his mother once as an adult, after a game in Miami during his rookie season.)

When Gilbert was 8, his father packed up his Mazda RX-7 and drove from Florida to California to pursue his dream of becoming an actor. Arriving in Burbank, they only had $50, no plan and no place to stay. After surviving on McDonald’s and living out of a car for three nights, Gilbert Arenas Sr. found employment, bouncing between odd jobs until he acquired some acting gigs.

When his father took a night job at UPS, Gilbert would watch his father leave for work at 2:30 a.m., and he’d be right behind, heading to a nearby park to work on his game. “All I knew was, he’s working and working. So, I always knew, if I want something in life, I got to work,” Arenas said.