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Y! Sources: New York's J.R. Smith suspended 5 games for violating NBA's substance abuse policy. http://t.co/4nfiQHsIml
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@WojYahooNBA) September 6, 2013
Well, he always seemed like the type of guy that would do this. Just gives off the look of a pothead. haha
With this stuff about Odom and Beasley surfacing, I'm actually surprised more guys haven't been caught. Read a couple of interesting articles on SB Nation a couple weeks back on drug use in the NBA, really interesting actually.
TMZ cites a number of anonymous sources it calls "famous and current NBA players" in a report saying that anywhere from 10 to 30 percent of current NBA players use drugs harder than weed. Stuff like Lean (a codeine-based liquid) and Molly (a purer form of ol' party drug ecstasy).
The implication is that once the fourth test is done, there are no ramifications for drug use among NBA players. Which is absurd. "It's like Christmas Day." Yes, that's why the season drags in March: all the players are rolling during shootaround. The drugs we're talking about are still illicit substances, and team management nor the league is going to be particularly sympathetic to users going hog wild once their four tests are done.
I have little doubt that there is rampant marijuana use in the NBA. I have little doubt that there is rampant marijuana use by any group of younger-than-40 rich people. Two states did make recreational pot legal a couple months ago. Attitudes on the drug have changed, largely in younger generations. The NBA has rules against it, so players are at least somewhat careful. (That does not apply to Michael Beasley.) But it's not some great revelation that NBA players smoke. Nor is it really much of a problem. At least there's no evidence that it's hurting the players, their families or anyone else.
The harder stuff is more problematic because of its chemically addictive properties and the mysterious but probably awful impacts of long-term abuse. But this report is all conjecture, and until players start getting nailed -- by the league or the cops -- worry over it seems unproductive. Yes, drug abuse is bad. But we have little (if any) evidence that it's happening on any scale in the league.
The implication is that once the fourth test is done, there are no ramifications for drug use among NBA players. Which is absurd. "It's like Christmas Day." Yes, that's why the season drags in March: all the players are rolling during shootaround. The drugs we're talking about are still illicit substances, and team management nor the league is going to be particularly sympathetic to users going hog wild once their four tests are done.
I have little doubt that there is rampant marijuana use in the NBA. I have little doubt that there is rampant marijuana use by any group of younger-than-40 rich people. Two states did make recreational pot legal a couple months ago. Attitudes on the drug have changed, largely in younger generations. The NBA has rules against it, so players are at least somewhat careful. (That does not apply to Michael Beasley.) But it's not some great revelation that NBA players smoke. Nor is it really much of a problem. At least there's no evidence that it's hurting the players, their families or anyone else.
The harder stuff is more problematic because of its chemically addictive properties and the mysterious but probably awful impacts of long-term abuse. But this report is all conjecture, and until players start getting nailed -- by the league or the cops -- worry over it seems unproductive. Yes, drug abuse is bad. But we have little (if any) evidence that it's happening on any scale in the league.
I think a lot of NBA players can totally handle a smoking habit. If it's as rampant as everyone thinks, the product isn't really suffering. Execution and performance in the league are at spectacular levels, especially late in the season and in the playoffs, when TMZ alleges plenty of players treat the conclusion of their fourth random drug test as an invitation to the drug buffet. Clearly, if half the league is smoking, most are doing so responsibly.
But then you have the Beasleys. Society has a problem dealing with the Beasleys in civilian careers, and the NBA isn't quite sure how to deal with the Beasleys in its league. So someone like Beasley gets punished here and there -- sometimes by his team, sometimes by the law -- and eventually lands on the fringes of society. It's awful, but it also seems to some extent unavoidable.
But then you have the Beasleys. Society has a problem dealing with the Beasleys in civilian careers, and the NBA isn't quite sure how to deal with the Beasleys in its league. So someone like Beasley gets punished here and there -- sometimes by his team, sometimes by the law -- and eventually lands on the fringes of society. It's awful, but it also seems to some extent unavoidable.
Thoughts?
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