You can check it out here.

It’s pretty deep stuff that I can’t really get into because I’ve got to run in a few, but as always it’s worth the read.

With Gilbert’s value arguably at an all-time low after being sidelined for the second time due to his knee, some questioned whether or not Gilbert would still go through with his plans to opt-out at the end of the season, since he could probably increase his money-making potential by getting a healthy year under his belt.

Well, it looks like Gilbert doesn’t see it that way. According to Mike Jones, Gilbert is still intent on opting out of his current contract for a deal that “could exceed $100 million” (Mike’s words, not Gilbert’s or mine) this summer.

I can see where a lot of people would think this is a bad idea since a year of health would significantly increase his chance of getting a big contract. On the other hand, if he stayed in his current contract and got injured again, he could stand to lose a whole lot more than he has at this point.

Wizards GM Ernie Grunfeld is going to have a end-of-season press conference tomorrow, so expect a lot of questions on his plans with Gilbert tomorrow. We’ll keep you up to date with what he says.

DC Sports Bog has gathered up a bunch of quote from Gilbert on DeShawn Stevenson, his suit collection, and what it’s like sitting on the bench, among other things.

Here’s my favorite dialouge from the piece:

On whether he enjoyed watching DeShawn unleash his personality: “Yes. Especially for somebody, we’ve been knowing each other since we were in high school, to finally get the identity where people know him as his own self. That’s what I told him when he first started doing this [Can’t feel my face hand wave], and then his agent told him ‘Don’t do that, that’s a gang sign.’ I’m like, ‘five fingers across the face? What the hell kind of gang sign is that?’ And I was like, ‘You’ve found something that people are actually taken [with], you’ve got fans doing this, you’ve got little kids. Antawn’s daughter used to do it. She used to come, ‘daddy look.’ [Waving hand.] So I was like, that’s your snitch now, you’ve got to do it.”

Snitch? “Stitch.”

Niche? “Stick.”

Schtick? “Yeah.”

As you can tell, Gilbert has a lot of snitches in his personality.

I’ve been avoiding this news for the last few days because whenever I hear the phrase “knee drained” it freaks me out.  Not just because Gilbert fans have heard that way too much in the last year, but because it just sounds weird.  Bathtubs get drained, sinks get drained, not knees.  (By the way, if you want to see what a knee draining is like, several people have uploaded videos to YouTube.  Just search “knee drained” and you’ll find what you’re looking for.)

The good news is, that if you believe Gilbert, hopefully this will become a thing of the past.  Here’s what he had to say about his plans this summer:

I’m not going to try anything stupid this summer. I’m going to take my time and prepare for next season. I’m going to be smart about it this year. I’m going to have five or six months to get this thing strong again and ready to go again.

There’s been a lot of talk recently about whether or not the Wizards are better without Gilbert, especially in the wake of the Wizards prevailing after he decided to shut it down for the year.  It’s certainly safe to say the Wizards are better off without an injured Gilbert that hasn’t had time to re-adjust to his teammates, but Antawn Jamison and Bethlehem Shoals both make it clear that the team is still better when Agent Zero is 100%.

Here’s the quote from Jamison on the Wizards with a healthy Gilbert:

I’ve said it before, I’ll say it again: we’re a better team with him out on the court….I’m the captain. I’m telling you. He’s the best player on this team. How could you be better without him? That’s it.

At The Sporting Blog, Bethlehem Shoals devotes an entire column to the subject:

Let’s all step back for a second. Sure, Washington moves the ball better sans Arenas. And both Butler and Jamison are severely underrated. But a backlash against Arenas—that seems to miss the point. The guy is a total weirdo who, when healthy, plays his a** off and can win a game by himself. Sorry, but the Little Wizards That Could aren’t taking out Detroit, Boston, or even Orlando. They couldn’t hang with the Hawks at home. If there’s any success in this team’s future, they need to live and die by the Arenas wild card. Or at least acknowledge that, if this sports is at least somewhat about entertainment, no one fills that quotient like Agent Zero.