Former NBA player Gilbert Arenas cleans up at OC Fair basketball booth

Carnival games have a reputation of appearing simple then robbing people blind. But when former NBA player Gilbert Arenas stepped up to the net of a basketball booth Sunday at the OC Fair, he proved that with a enough talent, even the trickiest of games can be beat.

Despite being retired from the NBA, the 33-year-old scored multiple prizes from different hoop games at the fair — so many, in fact, that he reached the game’s prize limit for the day.

Arenas, who had an 80% free throw average during his NBA career that lasted from 2001 to 2012, posted a photo onto his Instagram account Sunday night. The photo shows him and his four children surrounded by a mountain of stuffed animal prizes. His winnings included a minion and the famous “It’s so fluffy” unicorn from Despicable Me.

He wrote in the caption: “We just got banned from all the basketball hoops at #orangecountyfair…”

However, Arenas was not banned from the fair but won the daily maximum for prizes from the basketball games, according to representatives of RCS, a carnival operator at the fair, and OC Fair spokeswoman Robin Wachner.

RCS Executive Director of Games Annie Kastl confirmed that the 15 basketball games at the fair have a limit of one prize per person, per day at each game. But maxing out on the prizes does not mean the winner cannot return.

“People can come back to play every day they want,” Kastl said. “In fact, we encourage them to come back every day.”

Arenas first entered the 2001 NBA draft where he was selected in the second round by the Golden State Warriors.

He played for 11 seasons in the NBA for teams such as the Washington [D.C.] Wizards, the Orlando Magic and the Memphis Grizzlies. Due to a knee injury, he retired from the NBA by 2012.

“Mr. Arenas is welcome back at OC Fair any time,” Vice President of RCS Chris Lopez said. “And that includes the basketball games.”