His off-the-court struggles aside for a couple hours, Gilbert Arenas
found that the on-the-court performance wasn’t all that peachy either.
(AP Photo/Nick Wass)

Spurs 97, Wizards 86: Yes, he played. But he didn’t play very well. Gilbert Arenas, on a sore knee, did pitch in 24 points and an impressive bank shot from halfcourt. But he was also a -13 despite dishing eight assists, as the Wizards let a lead get away against San Antonio. Tim Duncan, in comparison, was his usual consistent self, hitting 60% from the floor. Meanwhile, Duncan’s teammate Roger Mason, Jr. got hot, hitting every three he took. But it mostly felt like the Wizards just lost the plot — 15 points in the fourth quarter as you’re trying to protect a lead just isn’t going to cut it in the NBA, especially against the cerebral Spurs. As you can imagine, the questions after the game were light on basketball content. This is the real bummer of this whole situation — no matter how poorly or well (hey, it’s possible) the Wizards play for the remainder of the season, the only thing anyone will want to ask about is Gilbert, the guns and — when it eventually comes — the consequences and their effect.

Kings 2, Capitals 1: Being named to the American Olympic team on Friday must have energized Los Angeles netminder Jonathan Quick. Quick produced a number of fine saves to maintain the lead provided by a third period Michal Handzus shorthanded goal, and the Caps dropped their second straight on the left coast to the Kings, 2-1. Quick was especially vital in the second period, when the Caps peppered the L.A. end of the ice with 13 shots; Quick was outstanding, denying Alexander Ovechkin twice in less than a minute. Mike Green supplied the lone goal for the Caps, a power-play tally getting him to ten goals on the year. As much as we like Green, though, it’s all about Ovechkin. Hart Trophy voters take heed: this was the seventh game this season in which the Great Eight has failed to record a point — the Caps have lost six of those contests.