Stet Sports Blog

Gilbert Arenas will still be a prolific blogger. He’ll still have opinions that are unique and fly in the face of the status quo. But news of his recent surgery and pending time away from the court ensures that all of this will diminish in a few months.

And that won’t be good for his psyche, or his brand.

This is the same Gilbert Arenas that openly discusses relationship problems, politics, and *gasp* emotions. His blog was an open, candid letter to the world that showed, “I’m just like you, and so are a lot of athletes.” His ventures have spawned a new wave of athletes compelled by social networking, and the fact that they can speak comfortably unfiltered to their fans.

But fans is indeed the key word. Because if you aren’t on the court, casual fans that were drawn to your sport through your blog are no longer intrigued by the random ramblings on a blog post. What he, or any other athlete blogger had to say was but an attractive supplement to the product on the court, and when healthy, there was no better salesman than Gilbert Arenas.

To have an outlet that doesn’t draw people to watch his games is going to hurt him personally, because I’m sure he realizes that building his pool, rehabbing his knee, and making game predictions is only going to keep his core audience interested. And but for so long.

And if the core audience isn’t interested, it’s entirely possible that marketers will lose interest as well. Gilbert Arenas is one of the savviest business men in the NBA. He is an intelligent quote, and knows when and how his words can pique the most interest. It’s a big part of what gets him endorsements and product alignment.

But if you can’t drop 30 on any given night, why would it matter what you think about the team winning or losing? You didn’t help.

An injured Gilbert Arenas is no help to the team’s success or failure, which means he will be limited in his perspective on the team’s success or failure.

It’s heartbreaking because I’ve long believed that Gilbert Areans has the intelligence and the swag to be a Muhammad Ali type figure in society. A galvanizing political force, wrapped in smiles and jokes, tightly bundled in pure athletic acumen. Team sports minimizes this effect, but the advancing age of communication makes it more possible for more people to hear more of him.

As hard as it will be to not have him around or as influential on the D.C. sports scene, it must be harder to live and learn through it everyday.

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