Gilbert Arenas May Miss Season Opener

Flip Saunders says he has no clue if the banged Gil will be physically fit to suit up for the Wizards to start the season. From the WaPo: “Gilbert Arenas missed his second day of practice on Monday with soreness right ankle and Coach Flip Saunders said he was unsure if he would have the three-time all-star available for the season opener on Thursday in Orlando. Arenas first developed the injury during training camp. He was forced to miss the last two days, including an open scrimmage, before returning to play the first three preseason games. Arenas aggravated the ankle injury last Friday when he returned after missing the previous week with a strained right groin. ‘He’s got soreness in his ankle, a little bit of fluid,’ Saunders said. ‘It’s kind of day to day. Kind of wait to see how it is.’ When asked what his ‘gut’ told him about Thursday, Saunders joked, ‘We’re going down there. We’re going down there Tuesday, playing Thursday.’ Pressed specifically about Arenas, Saunders said, ‘I have no idea if he’s going to be ready or not ready.’ Arenas played just three minutes in the last four preseason games, so Saunders said not having Arenas doesn’t make it any tougher on the team to prepare for the Magic. ‘Not really, we’ve prepared, we’ve played a lot without him,’ Saunders said. ‘So, we’d love to have him. If we don’t have him, I still think we can go out there and be effective.'”