Tuesday, January 26, 2010

Wizards' Crittenton pleads guilty to misdemeanor gun charge

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Washington Wizards guard Javaris Crittenton pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor gun charge Monday, explaining he had a pistol because he feared teammate Gilbert Arenas would shoot him or blow up his car after the two argued over a card game.

The hearing marked the first time authorities confirmed Crittenton was the other player involved in the confrontation with Arenas, who pleaded guilty Jan. 15 to a felony gun charge.

D.C. Superior Court Senior Judge Bruce Beaudin sentenced Crittenton, 22, to a year of unsupervised probation after Crittenton pleaded guilty to misdemeanor possession of an unregistered firearm. Beaudin ordered Crittenton to mentor young people in Washington and to help with relief efforts for Haiti.

Beaudin didn't order a specific amount of community service but said his lawyer must report regularly on the work.

Crittenton must also pay a $1,000 fine and $250 into a victims' fund.

"I accept full responsibility for my bad judgment, my terrible mistake," Crittenton, who appeared in court wearing a gray suit and glasses, told the judge as he entered the plea. "I'm deeply sorry to the city of Washington, to the Wizards, to my family and to the NBA for this embarrassment."

Assistant U.S. Attorney Chris Kavanaugh said the two players first clashed Dec. 19 over a card game on a team flight back from a game in Phoenix. Arenas said he was too old for a fistfight and threatened to shoot Crittenton in the face, and Crittenton replied he would shoot Arenas in his surgically repaired knee, Kavanaugh said.

Later, Arenas said he would blow up or burn Crittenton's car, Kavanaugh said.

Two days later, Crittenton put his legally owned, unloaded handgun into his backpack before he left his apartment in Arlington, Va., for practice at the Verizon Center, Kavanaugh said.

Crittenton put the backpack in his locker and went to see team trainers, Kavanaugh said. When he returned he saw several guns -- Crittenton's lawyer said there were three, not four, as previously reported -- on a chair in front of his locker with a sign saying, "Pick 1."

Crittenton tossed one of the guns on the floor and told Arenas to get the weapons off the chair. Then, fearing for his safety, Crittenton took the handgun out of his backpack and showed it to Arenas, Kavanaugh said.

However, Kavanaugh said there is no evidence Crittenton ever threatened anyone with the gun.

Prosecutors said Arenas told Crittenton: "You are going to need more than that little gun."

Kavanaugh said Crittenton voluntarily surrendered his gun to authorities. Police had searched his apartment Jan. 14 but didn't find it.

Crittenton's lawyer, Peter H. White, said his client was scared of Arenas. He emphasized that Crittenton, in his third year in the NBA, did not have the stature on the team that Arenas enjoyed.

White said that after Crittenton tossed one of Arenas' guns on the floor, Arenas said: "If I'm giving you these three guns, imagine what I have in my car."

Arenas has said repeatedly that the situation was a misguided attempt at a joke and that he never intended to hurt anybody.

White told reporters after the hearing that Crittenton wouldn't make any more statements because he is scheduled to meet with NBA officials Tuesday.

Crittenton faces a suspension or fine from the NBA because possession of a gun at an NBA arena is a violation of the league's collective bargaining agreement.

NBA spokesman Tim Frank said the league had no immediate comment on Crittenton's plea.

The Wizards said in a statement Monday that Crittenton used "very bad judgment."

"The charges filed today against Javaris Crittenton and his subsequent plea represent another disappointing development in what has already been a long and frustrating process for the team, the NBA and, most importantly, our fans," the team said.

A spokeswoman for Arenas' lawyer declined to comment on Crittenton's plea. Arenas, who is in the second season of a six-year, $111 million contract and has been suspended indefinitely by the NBA, is scheduled to be sentenced March 26.

Obama meets with Lakers, praises team's off-court work

WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Barack Obama welcomed the NBA champion Los Angeles Lakers to the White House on Monday, praising the team for their accomplishments on the basketball court and their service in the community.

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An avid basketball fan himself, Obama said he gets enormous pleasure from watching excellence on the court -- and nobody exemplified excellence more than the Lakers last year, as they won their 15th league title, defeating the Orlando Magic.

Obama said he was especially excited to meet Lakers' coach Phil Jackson, who has won 10 championships, though he didn't hesitate to point out that six of those victories were with Obama's hometown Chicago Bulls.

"You remember that," Obama joked with former Lakers all-star Magic Johnson, who was on the losing end of the Bulls 1991 victory.

Obama commended the Lakers players not only for their athletic achievements, but also their work off the court. The players held a fitness clinic for Washington-area school children Monday, and several players are donating money to relief efforts in Haiti.

The Lakers added to Obama's collection of sports jerseys, presenting him with a bright yellow jersey with the president's name stitched on the back.

Moon recovered, plays against Heat

MIAMI (AP) -- Cleveland forward Jamario Moon returned to the court Monday night, checking in as a reserve during the first quarter of the Cavaliers' game against the Miami Heat.

Moon hadn't played since Jan. 3, and had missed 14 straight shots dating to Dec. 27 before getting hurt. Cavs coach Mike Brown said Moon was medically cleared in time for the team's shootaround practice Monday morning, and the team made the decision to use Moon against one of his former teams not long before game time.

Moon came into Monday averaging 5.0 points for the Cavaliers this season.

Nuggets won't suspend Smith for sulking on bench

DENVER (AP) -- The Denver Nuggets have decided not to suspend J.R. Smith over his behavior on the bench that rubbed management the wrong way.

Smith will be allowed to play against Charlotte on Monday night, although Rex Chapman, vice president of player personnel, didn't rule out some sort of punishment for the guard.

Smith, who has been mired in a prolonged shooting slump, sulked on the bench Saturday night, when he played a season-low 12 minutes and scored just three points in a win over New Orleans.

Nuggets coach George Karl said Smith will come off the bench, as usual, against the Bobcats. Star forward Carmelo Anthony will miss the game with a sprained left ankle and Joey Graham will start in his place, Karl said.

Hornets deal guard Brown to Bulls for backup Gray

CHICAGO (AP) -- The New Orleans Hornets have traded starting shooting guard Devin Brown to the Chicago Bulls for backup 7-foot center Aaron Gray.

The 31-year-old Brown has played in 39 games for New Orleans this season, starting all but two games. He is averaging 9.7 points per game and has made nearly 37 percent of his shots from 3-point range.

The Bulls this year have missed the scoring of guard Ben Gordon, who signed with Detroit before the season. The trade was announced Monday, before Chicago played at San Antonio and the Hornets at Portland.

The move opens the way for rookie Marcus Thornton, who has averaged 9.4 points in only 18.6 minutes per game, to start for the Hornets. It also brings New Orleans within about $424,000 of getting under the NBA's luxury tax threshold.

Gray, who is in his third NBA season, averaged 2.3 points and two rebounds in eight games this season with the Bulls.

Glen 'Big Baby' Davis wants to drop nickname

BOSTON (AP) - -- Boston Celtics forward Glen "Big Baby" Davis is looking to change his image. Step One: Drop the nickname.

Davis, who missed the start of the season following surgery for a broken thumb he sustained in a fight with a childhood friend, was recently fined $25,000 for directing inappropriate language at a fan during a game against Detroit last Wednesday.

"I'm in the public eye. Kids look up to me. You just can't make those kind of statements," he said before Monday's game against the Los Angeles Clippers. "It (stinks) that you have to learn this way, how to keep your emotions intact. I know who I am as a person, and hopefully my fans know who I am as a person, that I am a good guy. I'm not a troublemaker or a fighter."

Davis went on to say that he'd like to drop his `Big Baby' nickname. When asked what he'd like to use in place of it, a reporter suggested "Uno. Uno."

He smiled and agreed.

"No comment," Boston coach Dic Rivers said, when informed Davis no longer wanted to be called `Big Baby."

Then asked if it was a sign Davis was ready to mature, Rivers said: "That's a start, right? He's young. He's got to grow up in front of a lot of people."

During the summer, Davis signed a contract that will pay his $6 million over the next two years.

He said he now understands what he needs to do and appreciated the Celtics' understanding this season.

"Sometimes, in the game of basketball, you kind of show your emotions in a different way, just like when you go to work and you get a staple in your hand or your boss is messing with you," he said. "In my job, it's just a different experience. I'm a young guy who is trying to learn how to live life in this sport and adapt to this lifestyle. There are some tough bumps. The Celtics have done a great job of sticking with me and understanding."

Davis, in his third season, is averaging 5.8 points and 4.1 rebounds.

Davis played a key role in Boston's playoffs last season with Kevin Garnett missing the entire postseason because of a knee injury. Davis hit a game-winning buzzer-beater in Game 4 of the second round against Orlando before the Celtics lost at home in the seventh game.

Condensation causing problems with Celtics court

Unseasonably warm temperature has been causing condensation to form on the famed floor during Boston's game against the Los Angeles Clippers on Monday night, causing a brief delay and forcing ball boys to scramble to keep the court dry.

With temperatures reaching the 50s and heavy rain falling earlier in the day, condensation built and caused a stoppage with 2:28 left in the first quarter.

As play moved from one end to the other, ball boys were out using long-handled dust mops to wipe the floor while the action was still going on. They would hustle off as teams went on fastbreaks.

The TD Garden has ice -- for Boston Bruins' games -- under the parquet floor.