Gilbert Arenas Got Paid 5 Years After Leaving Washington Wizards In 2011

The former player signed a contract worth $111 million in 2008.

Gil’s Arena podcast host and former NBA player Gilbert Arenas played for several teams before leaving the league after the 2011-2012 season. However, thanks to a contract he signed with the Washington Wizards, he continued getting a paycheck from the team until 2016. In an interview with Vlad TV, Arenas said he “earned every dollar of it.”

According to Moneywise, Arenas was cashing paychecks from the Wizards five years after his final game with the team. In 2008, he signed a 6-year, $111,000,000 contract, which made him one of the highest-paid NBA players. During his discussion with Vlad, he admitted to getting paid until 2016.

“So for five years, you got to just sit around on your couch,” Vlad told Arenas. “‘Cause you were like one of the highest-paid players that wasn’t actually even playing. That was wild!”

When Arenas signed the contract, he had just taken over the team after Michael Jordan retired for the third and final time in 2003. Pollin told Arenas, who made three All-Star teams during his tumultuous stay in D.C., that he helped the team stay relevant.

Arenas recalled the conversation he had with Pollin on an episode of his podcast, No Chill with Gilbert Arenas, with ESPN star Stephen A. Smith.

“I get the call from Abe Pollin. And he says, ‘Whatever you want, you did what you said you were gonna do. You got me out of my Jordan era, you turned this franchise around, and I owe you whatever you want,'” Arenas said.

Arenas played with the Golden State Warriors from 2001 to 2003 before joining the Wizards from 2003 until 2010. He also played with the Orlando Magic from 2010 to 2011 before joining the Memphis Grizzlies in 2012.