Okay, so basically, we're going to take this one in two strides. First we'll do the half-full version for any Wizards fans who might be reading as to not send them airborne, then we'll do the half-empy side for the sadists among us.

Fresh off finding out Gilbert Arenas had more surgery and won't be back for a while, the Wizards headed toward their first preseason game with the same "them-against-the-world" attitude that got them to the fifth seed last year without Arenas. Then center Brendan Haywood sprained his wrist in practice. No problem, there's a good chance he'll be back in a few weeks. Then tonight in their first preseason game, not five minutes into the game, Antawn Jamison hit the deck with what is being described as a strained knee.

Luckily, there's a good chance neither injury will be serious. Barring any severe second opinions or terrible MRI results, both players should be back within the month.

Okay, Wizards fans, that's all you need to hear, you can head back to whatever you were doing before. Drive safely.

...

NBA Essentials ranks our six favorite stories of the day.

1. We're Off to See the Wizards ... via ShareBro Jake. A Jeopardy question answer the contestants missed but you would definitely get.

2. Pickaxe and Roll. Measuring defense: George Karl's doing it wrong.

3. The Sporting Blog. Stephon Marbury just wants to fly again.

4. Blazers Edge. You'd be surprised how important the whole Darius Miles situation is for serious Blazers fans.

5. Queen City Hoops. I could (and sometimes do) read posts about Gerald Wallace all day, every day. This is a good one in the emerging genre.

6. FreeDarko. FanHouse's own Matt Watson documents the numerous excuses made to justify keeping Amir Johnson on the bench last season.

BONUS not-really-basketball Essential item: The New York Times on Philadelphia's large, beautiful murals. The 700 Level has the tenuous hoops hook: the amazing Dr. J piece on Ridge Avenue.

NBA Essentials ranks our six favorite stories of the day.

1. Dallas Morning News. Josh Howard loves this country. In case you thought otherwise.

2. South Florida Sun-Sentinel. Pat Riley turns his evil sights on the Miami front office; Randy Pfund retires.

3. NBA.com. Gilbert Arenas may have gotten engaged, but he wasn't the one on his knee.

4. Bergen Record. Eddy Curry shows up to media day dressed like a pregnant woman, apparently not in good shape (even by Eddy Curry standards).

5. LA Times. Great read on the development of Andrew Bynum.

6. The Sporting Blog. The situation in Golden State is becoming unstable, as Chris Mullin looks to be on his way out.

Gilbert Arenas made an appearance at media day, but it was for photos only. He skipped out on the actual um, media portion of the commitment, and as such both he and the Wizards received $15,000 fines. The likely reason that Gilbert bailed is because he's tired of the questions about his knee. As he has said before, he can't understand why everyone is "tripping out" over his most recent surgery. But it's not like the topic never came up.

Sure, there were lighthearted stories involving wristbands and the growing out of afros. I mean, it is still the Wizards. But there were also plenty of questions about Gilbert's knee that his teammates were forced to answer, which is a position that I'm sure they would rather not have been in.

It was a thoughtless move by Gilbert -- still the team's biggest star -- to leave his teammates there answering all of the questions that he should have been there to answer himself. But it's not likely to cause any problems in that locker room. Gil is beloved by everyone in the organization, and by all the media in town as well. When he finally does meet the press (which is something he hasn't done since signing that $111 million dollar deal), I'm fairly certain all will be forgiven.

[via TSB]

NBA Essentials ranks our six favorite stories of the day.

1. TrueHoop. Spending a day with NBA referees. Tons of great notes in here.

2. Palm Beach Post. Michael Beasley comes ... err, clean: "And when asked if he was hiding in the hotel room when security first entered Beasley answered, 'Honestly, I don't know.' I'm not sure our young protagonist understands what that word means.

3. Ball in Europe. Highlights from Josh Childress' first preseason game in Greece.

4. OregonLive. Nate McMillan wants to dampen the high expectations facing the Blazers. Good luck.

5. Washington Post, via Bullets Forever. The Brendan Haywood-Etan Thomas war is over!

6. Sactown Royalty. (Self-link alert!) Investigating the causes of Sacramento's bloated salary.

Apologies, ladies: the NBA's quirkiest superstar is officially off the market. We found out yesterday that Gilbert Arenas has gotten engaged, to his long-time girlfriend and the mother of his two children, Laura Govan. Normally I wouldn't be encouraging any NBA player under the age of 30 to tie the knot, but since the relationship has gone through seven plus years of ups and downs, I suppose the two know what they're getting themselves into.

Gilbert gave the Post a gratuitous and innocuous quote on the matter:

"Life is about growth and getting smarter about the choices we make," Arenas said in an e-mail. "Being a husband and father will require both of those!"

Indeed it will. The couple has had an on-again, off-again history, with a breakup as recently as November of last year. And when you consider the fact that they overcame a messy paternity suit just a couple of years ago, the marriage is likely to withstand just about anything. And hey, if nothing else, it'll give Gilbert something to do while he's not playing basketball over the next few months.

I know, I know, "Impossible!" you cry. Sadly, it's true. Gilbert Arenas is going to miss up to a month of the regular season after minor surgery on his bionic frequently repaired knee.

The Washington Post reports Arenas had minor surgery this morning that "cleaned out some debris" from his knee and will be out until December. Arenas told reporters that he had planned all along on not participating in training camp or the preseason.

Well isn't that nice to know. In the words of Adam Sandler from The Wedding Singer, "Once again, things that could have been brought to my attention yesterday!" Don't you think it would have been nice to know if Arenas was going to ditch training camp and preseason before he went and re-signed for the 6-year, $111 million deal that was supposed to finally assure the reunion of Arenas, fellow re-signee Antawn Jamison and Caron Butler for a whole year? It's entirely possible that the Wizards were aware of this situation beforehand, but from the sound of the article, it doesn't seem like it. Arenas said it was slowing him down, so they decided to go ahead and do the surgery. He also mentions that he thinks it's a good thing.

"This should actually allow me to come back faster" he said. Well that's awesome. Oh, well. Wizards fans have gotten used to paying Arenas without actually having him play. And $111 million buys a ton of physical therapy. And a pool.

FanHouse's Tom Ziller argues his ranking of the top 50 players in the NBA.

Gilbert Arenas doesn't fit any prototype at hand. That, as we all know, leads to vast misunderstanding. Look at his field goal percentage and -- "Hey, it's Starbury for a new age." Wrong, absolutely wrong. Gil is more like an elite scorer -- Kobe, LeBron, 'Melo, old T-Mac -- who just happens to be short enough and a gifted enough passer to be a point guard.

FanHouse's Tom Ziller argues his ranking of the top 50 players in the NBA.

The NBA has seen some woefully lopsided trades this decade: Tracy McGrady for Steve Francis and Cuttino Mobley, Vince Carter for three expired lottery tickets and a 15% off coupon at IHOP, and most recently, Pau Gasol for Kwame Brown and Marc Gasol. But Kwame appears in one more severely tilted trade: when the Wizards sent him to L.A. in a sign-and-trade for Caron Butler. The Lakers gave up Butler for the opportunity to pay Brown up to $9 million a year.

Butler, a cat who got along with Kobe famously despite a bad team effort in '04-05, was a young stud on his rookie deal. Washington ended up locking him in to one of the league's shrewdest contracts; to this day, the 'Zards can pay Gilbert Arenas and Antawn Jamison eight digits because they're only pitching Caron seven.

Considering what Butler does on the court, it might be the best move on Ernie Grunfeld's resumé.

NBA Essentials ranks our six favorite stories of the day.

1. Knickerblogger. Shaq, in Venn diagram.

2. FirstCuts. Baron Davis gets a better sneaker deal in China than from the usual companies.

3. The Blowtorch. Pat Riley at the Hall of Fame: that's amore.

4. D.C. Sports Bog. DeShawn Stevenson apparently likes what Brandon Jennings is doing in the world of hair innovation.

5. AFP, via HoopsHype. Here's a lede you don't see on the foreign wires every day: "Los Angeles-bound guard Sun Yue has said he does not want to be known as 'China's Magic Johnson' as he seeks a spot on the Laker's roster, but is happy to be known as the 'Monkey King.'"

6. True Hoop. An eponysterical photo.