Arenas’ shoes are on other feet

While Georgia Tech guard Javaris Crittenton may one day fill Washington Wizards guard Gilbert Arenas’ shoes, he certainly didn’t think that day would be yesterday.

During pre-draft workouts for the Wizards at Verizon Center, Crittenton’s foot burst through his sneaker. Fortunately for the guard, Arenas happened to be on hand with an extra pair.

“Gilbert gave me his shoes, because I busted mine,” said Crittenton, who is projected to go in the first round of the NBA Draft on June 28. “I didn’t realize [my foot had burst through my shoe] at first because I was playing so hard, but it didn’t feel right. Then I looked [at my shoe] at it and there was a big hole in it. Luckily, Gilbert wears the same size. His shoes were comfortable, but those are big shoes to fill. I hope he lets me keep them; I think he will.

“I had a pretty good workout in them. We were really competing out there.”

Yesterday’s workouts — the Wizards held two sessions instead of one, like on the first day — featured a number of players who are projected to go in the first round of the draft.

Along with Crittenton, the morning session was heavy on swingmen. It included his Yellow Jackets’ teammate Thadeus Young and Vanderbilt’s Derrick Byers, a senior who could be one of the most NBA-ready prospects in the draft.

The Wizards also worked out Duke big man Josh McRoberts and George Washington guard Carl Elliott. In a show of support for Elliott, former Colonials teammates Mike Hall, a late addition to the Wizards’ roster last season, and Pops Mensah-Bonsu, who played for the Dallas Mavericks last season, watched the workout.

“They told me they were going to come by and give me some support,” Elliott said. “It was good because they have made it to the NBA and they played this year. They told me go out there and work hard.”

The Wizards won’t conduct workouts this weekend. They will resume on Friday, and Washington is scheduled to look at Jared Dudley (Boston College), Curtis Sumpter (Villanova), Reyshawn Terry (North Carolina) and Avis Wyatt (Virginia State).