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Arenas' athletic ability shows during scrimmage

Look out Richard Jefferson, someone on this year's Arizona men's basketball team may be able to jump higher and have more athletic ability than you.

Freshman guard Gilbert Arenas displayed sheer athleticism during last night's Pepsi Red-Blue scrimmage, a game in which Arenas' Blue team won 93-86

Arenas poured in 22 points and pulled down eight rebounds, five of which were offensive, in his debut in an Arizona uniform.

"I was nervous at the beginning, but I got through it the second half," Arenas said. "It was a little calmer in the second half, I was just trying to do what I do best."

Arenas came to the UA program fresh out of Grant High School in Van Nuys, Calif., where he was a three-time Valley Pac-8 Player of the Year as well as a three-time member of the Los Angeles City Team.

He is Grant High School's all-time leading scorer with 2,124 points and averaged 33.4 points per game as a senior.

Grant High School, though, is a small school, so Arenas was not highly recruited out of high school. Part of that reason is also that he was only 16 years old at recruiting time and some recruiters didn't think he was a senior.

"I really didn't know about college," Arenas said. "There is a small school called Northridge, and the guy that was recruiting me at Northridge switched over to Kansas State, so I was looking at them a lot. When Arizona came in I had a vote with all my classes, I asked them which one and Arizona won."

Arenas didn't surprise his teammates with his athletic ability and flare, but, according to fellow freshman guard and roommate, Jason Gardner, he may have surprised some of the UA's future opponents.

"I don't think he surprised me, but he surprised a lot of people out there," Gardner said. "He wasn't a highly recruited player, but I think that is good for him so he can show everyone how good he is. After this season, people will wish they recruited him. After a couple games, everyone will know about him."

While Arenas was obviously a fan-favorite last night, applauding him for his dunks and rebounds, UA head coach Lute Olson wasn't as quick to praise him.

"It is obvious to see the kind of ability that Gilbert Arenas has," Olson said. "We just need to eliminate some of the freshman mistakes like not moving well without the ball. But part of that problem is last year he always had the ball and all of a sudden now he has to learn to screen and move without the ball, and that has a ways to go yet."

Olson also mentioned that he wasn't too pleased with Arenas' ability to showboat during moments where he just needs to make a play.

"In this kind of game you still stay in the game, but on Sunday the hook will be out as quickly as it can get out," he said. "He needs to understand that the game is meant to be played the way it is meant to be played. It is a case where he has so much ability and he can't let his ability go to waste by doing things that are not sound things."

Arenas, though, works as hard as anyone on the team as he is in McKale Center every night for about an hour, shooting jump shot after jump shot.

"I was in here until 12 o'clock last night shooting jump shots," Arenas said. "I have one of the trainers opening the door for me. I stay for an hour. It is something I used to do in high school also. I go by the little elementary school by my house and just shoot all day."

Whether he makes the starting rotation or not, with Arenas' athletic ability, he adds yet another dimension to an already deep UA team.