The Washington Post (Ivan Carter) reports: Gilbert Arenas said he opted out of the final year of his contract with the Washington Wizards by filing the necessary paperwork with the league office Friday. The move makes Arenas, who was scheduled to earn $12.8 million next season, an unrestricted free agent. Teams will be able to negotiate with free agents July 1. Wizards President Ernie Grunfeld has repeatedly stated that the team plans to re-sign Arenas and all-star forward Antawn Jamison, who will also be an unrestricted free agent.
InsideHoops.com says: Unless something crazy happens, expect Arenas to re-sign with the Wizards. That’s the general rule of thumb with all star players who become free agents. There are barely any teams in the league with the salary cap space to give them big contracts, aside from their own team and maybe a few others.
