Gilbert Arenas, Javaris Crittenton reportedly drew guns in locker room

The NBA started the new decade in lockdown as league officials and Washington, D.C., law enforcement agencies investigated a report that Wizards teammates Gilbert Arenas and Javaris Crittenton drew pistols and pointed them at each other in an argument in the dressing room at the Verizon Center.

CBS Sports had previously reported that D.C. police were investigating reports that Arenas and Crittenton had brought guns into the dressing room.

Arenas acknowledged he had three pistols in the safe in his locker, saying he put them there to keep them away from his young children. Arenas then turned the guns over to the Wizards.

Yahoo reported Friday night, however, that the investigation involved a “standoff” between the two players.

The New York Post then reported that the two players had actually drawn the guns in an argument over paying off a bet.

The Post quoted Kendrick Long, a friend of Crittenton’s who says Crittenton told him of the incident.

“[Arenas] was . . . with him,” Long told the Post. “He [Crittenton] was just defending himself!”

Arenas posted tweets Friday, first noting, “i wake up this morning and seen i was the new JOHN WAYNE. . . . Media is too funny.”

In a subsequent post several hours later, he wrote, “i understand this is serious.. but if u ever met me you know i dont do serious things. im a goof ball this story today dont sound goofy to me.”

At the team’s practice Friday, Arenas, asked if anything had happened between himself and Crittenton, said, “I don’t know.”

The NBA had no comment, with a league spokesman noting, “There is an active investigation by D.C. law enforcement authorities, which we are monitoring closely. We are not taking any independent action at this time.”

Whether the players are found to have drawn their guns, they have already violated NBA rules, which prohibit bringing firearms inside team facilities.

In 2005, Portland fined rookie guard Sebastian Telfair, who’s now a Clipper, for bringing a loaded pistol on a team charter.

The Post, citing an anonymous source “close to the Wizards,” said the Wizards players argued over a bet that Arenas had lost but hadn’t paid off, alleging that Arenas then drew a pistol, after which Crittenton drew his.

mark.heisler@latimes.com