After reports surfaced that the NBA doesn’t plan to randomly test players for marijuana in the upcoming season, people had a few jokes.
Gear up for a different type of NBA season now that the league has announced that they’ve switched up their testing policies. The COVID-19 pandemic has caused the NBA and other professional sports leagues to make some major adjustments in order to keep themselves up and running, and on Thursday (December 3) it was shared that the NBA will not be testing players for marijuana in the upcoming season.
For years, physicians as well as cannabis enthusiasts have commented on the healing and medicinal properties of marijuana. Many players have petitioned for the league to change its policies, especially considering some have used cannabis to help in healing injuries. Sports journalist Ben Dowsett tweeted that he was told the news of the NBA’s new marijuana rules by sources in the league.
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“Continuing a theme from the Orlando bubble, the NBA will not test its players for marijuana for the upcoming 2020-21 season,” said Dowsett. “Sources say this decision is largely based on COVID safety – just another way of limiting unnecessary contacts. However, there’s also significant expectation from many in the league that the entire marijuana testing program is on the way out in the near future.”
After the news began to circulate about Dowsett’s claims, he returned to clarify that his source stated that random tests will cease next season, however “past offenders or those who have given reasonable cause to suspect use – will continue.”
Fans ran wild with the memes, and J.R. Smith’s name came up so often that he began to trend on Twitter. Check out a few reactions below.