A powerful open letter to Gilbert Arenas

There are a thousand things I could say to start off this article, some of which cannot be put in print.

So, allow me to start off with this: Gilbert Arenas...I feel sorry for you.

As a black man and a father, you should want to set a better example for not only your fans and the community in which you represent...but you should also be setting an example for your kids. Your comments (and your response to all who opposed them) not only make black men look like pigs, but you put the NBA and WNBA in a very awkward position.

First thing first, it goes without saying that Mr. Arenas has had a history of setting fires wherever he goes (his locker-room incident while with the Wizards, his on-off relationship with ex-fiancee Laura Govan, etc.). His basketball skills were inhibited by his brash personality, and while that may be a good ego-booster, it doesn't help when you're bouncing from team to team and can't get along with teammates.

Now that he is no longer an active NBA player (last I checked, his last professional game was in China two years ago), Arenas has all the time in the world to show off his greatest asset and worst quality: his talking ability.

On his Instagram, he posted a fairly classless video voicing his opinion on the WNBA. While I cannot fault him for having an opinion, I can make an argument for why he is wrong.

Just because the WNBA doesn't flaunt its sexuality, doesn't mean that they aren't appealing. Arenas referenced Skylar Diggins, who is fairly attractive. Yet he doesn't recognize her overall talent, including her on-court game.

Arenas also doesn't appreciate the efforts of the WNBA to become a diverse game. You don't have to be an A-list model to have talent; just as you don't have to have a college degree to play in the NBA. At least, the WNBA has a policy in place that you have to be 22 in order to be draft-eligible.

Lastly, Arenas has five kids, including two daughters. As a first-time father of a baby girl, I would love to be able to raise my child to know that she is on just as equal footing as a man when it comes to basketball ability. I would love to be able to tell her that she doesn't have to be a sex symbol in order to garner attention.

What Arenas is doing by his actions is setting a bad example for his daughters. Basically, he is telling them, "if you want people to play attention to you, you need to dress like a slut." What kind of example is that to tell your kids?

Then again, I'm not 100% certain he thought about that when he posted the video to begin with. To be honest, his actions in his career weren't the most thought out, either.

If this is how Arenas chooses to represent himself, that is fine. However, when he makes those statements, he needs to remember who and what he represents.