Former NBA All-Star Says Teammates “Played Better” on Cannabis
Recently a number of athletes and members of the sports community came forward to discuss their use of cannabis in one way or another. Most recently five-time NBA all-star Chauncey Billups has spoken up about cannabis use in the NBA.
Golden State Warrior coach, Steve Kerr’s recent admission of trying cannabis to treat his back pain may have given others the courage to come forward. Billups discussed the matter on NBA Countdown when the idea of using cannabis to treat pain came up. Billups feels that players should be able to treat their ailments with cannabis without fear of punishment from the league.
Billups followed up the notion by claiming that he preferred when certain teammates played while under the influence of cannabis because it calmed their nerves and helped alleviate the overwhelming pressure to perform at such a high level.
“I honestly played with players, I’m not going to name names . . . I wanted them to smoke,” he said. “They played better like that.”
Billups is hardly the first person to admit to his teammates’ cannabis use in the NBA. In 2001 Charles Oakley claimed that 60 percent of the league was using cannabis.
Public sentiment has shifted significantly since then, and now more than half the states in America allow for medical cannabis. The NBA’s collective-bargaining agreement though still bans cannabis and players who fail a drug test risk fines and suspensions.
Billups’ statements come close on the heels of New York Knicks president and Hall of Fame coach Phil Jackson’s admission of cannabis use while a player. Jackson said he used cannabis to help with back pain, and feels that it is time to allow players to freely consume cannabis.
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver has stated that enforcing the league’s cannabis ban is “not a priority.” He continued by stating that he felt cannabis critics were partially to blame and that undoing a pointless and harmful policy that isn’t enforced should be a priority.
