Arenas Ready to Hold Court in Valley

All the chest-pounding, trash-talking, dribble-between-the-legs hotshots who think they’re the kings of pickup basketball, here’s a warning: You’re about to lose your throne.

Gilbert Arenas is back in town.

He’s as much a basketball god in gyms and playgrounds in the Valley as anyone past or present. Mention his first name at Balboa Park or Valley Plaza Park and everyone recognizes him as if he were Kobe.

He’s only 18 and still growing, up to 6 feet 4 1/2, 200 pounds. He drove seven hours from Tucson to Van Nuys last weekend and immediately played in two college summer league games at L.A. Trade Tech College.

On Sunday night, he scored 21 points, missing his first four shots, then making nine of his next 11. His team lost in overtime.

“I’m glad to be home,” Arenas said.

He’ll be spending the next month playing pickup games in the Valley, stopping by UCLA’s John Wooden Center to play against the pros and playing in the college league on weekends. His summer will end after he serves as a camp counselor at the Michael Jordan camp in Santa Barbara next month.

It should be quite a year for Arenas, who averaged 15.4 points and 4.1 rebounds as a freshman guard at Arizona last season. If he continues to improve and mature, next season might be his last in college before he tries the NBA.

Certainly, he displays moments of NBA-like athleticism. There aren’t many teenagers who can swish a three-pointer from the top of the key and soar through the lane for a dunk.

But consistency is crucial for a young guard to play against the best. Arenas isn’t there yet, but in a year he could be.

“If it happens, it happens,” he said. “I’m just going to practice and play hard. I need everything.”

What makes Arenas so likable to fans and teammates is his unselfishness. He averaged 32.8 points his senior year at Grant High, but he wasn’t a ball hog and would gladly let others score if it meant the difference between victory and defeat.

He’s most fun to watch in pickup games, where players have the freedom to express themselves in ways they’d never dare try in front of a coach.

“I get to do all my moves,” he said. “That’s the best part.”

If there are any volunteers to play Arenas in a game of one-on-one, they better be professionals. His arms are too long, his hands too quick, his legs too strong for almost anyone to beat him.

But success in basketball isn’t only about talent. It requires passion, commitment, experience and instincts. Every pickup game or organized game Arenas plays in this summer will help him move closer to reaching his desired level.

Don’t forget Arenas is only 18 and learning something new every day.

“I never even thought I’d play college basketball,” he said. “I didn’t think I was going to have a chance to go to the NBA, so I might as well keep a level head and not think too far ahead.”

Don’t bother talking to Arenas this summer about the NBA or Arizona perhaps being ranked No. 1 in the nation.

He’s here to “get back to the neighborhood and play.”

If you’re a fan, watch and enjoy. If you’re playing against him, watch and weep.

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City Section basketball coaches continue to shoot themselves in the foot by allowing players not enrolled in their schools to play on summer teams. It’s perfectly legal, but that doesn’t make it right.

All it does is create animosity among coaches, encourage players to shop around and raises questions about integrity, ethics and loyalty.

The latest example is Frank Robinson, a junior at Littlerock High who began playing for Cleveland on Monday even though he’s not enrolled. He might transfer, he might not.

Coach Adam Levitt of Cleveland decided to play him and seems convinced none of his players care about losing playing time to someone who’s not a student at the school.

Levitt is not breaking any rules, but is this the kind of philosophy that’s good for the game? . . .

Sophomore Gino Riney of Grant is improving so quickly that he could be one of the Valley’s best guards next season. He can create his own shots and makes precision passes. . . .

Coach Al Bennett of Birmingham rarely plays freshmen on the varsity, but that should change this season because of guard Jordan Farmar. The 13-year-old, who’s 5-8 and starting a growth spurt, can shoot, dribble and handle pressure. His father, Damon, is the hitting instructor for the Dodgers’ farm team in Yakima, Wash. . . .

Sophomore forward Marty Matthies of Harvard-Westlake has the stamina to run the court nonstop. It might have something to do with playing water polo. The basketball coaches have nicknamed him “Aqua Boy.” He leaves Friday on a trip to Europe with the Wolverines’ water polo team.

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The college basketball summer league, known as the Say No Classic, takes place on Saturdays and Sundays from 11 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. at L.A. Trade Tech. Players from USC, UCLA, Stanford, Pepperdine, Cal State Northridge and many other schools are participating. Admission is free. . . .

If pitcher Roger Clemens of the New York Yankees ever needs to test his fastball, third baseman Eric Ross of Royal is the perfect candidate. Ross was hit 21 times last season by pitches. This summer, he was even hit by a pitch thrown from a pitching machine. “We call him magnet,” Coach Dan Maye said. . . .

Colby Judd, a 6-5 left-handed senior pitcher-first baseman, has transferred to Simi Valley after living in Tulare. . . .

When Woodland Hills hosts Northridge in a Little League District 40 playoff game today, it will be a battle of little brothers. Pitcher Shaun Kort of Woodland Hills is the brother of Jason Kort, El Camino Real’s All-City first baseman. Pitcher Casey Haerther of Northridge is the brother of Cody Haerther, Chaminade’s All-Mission League first baseman. . . .

Justin Fargas, former Notre Dame High running back, is healthy and ready to make a comeback for Michigan after recovering from a broken leg. It coincides with the return of his father, Antonio, to nightly television. TNN will show 92 episodes of the 1970s series “Starsky and Hutch” five nights a week beginning on July 31. Antonio co-stars as the con-man-turned-informant Huggy Bear.

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Eric Sondheimer’s local column appears Wednesday and Sunday. He can be reached at (818) 772-3422 or eric.sondheimer@latimes.com