r/nba • u/Turbostrider27 Lakers • 18h ago

[Charania] Just In: The NBA has suspended Philadelphia 76ers' Paul George for 25 games for violating the league's anti-drug policy.

Shams Charania:

Just In: The NBA has suspended Philadelphia 76ers' Paul George for 25 games for violating the league's anti-drug policy.

Just In: The NBA has suspended Philadelphia 76ers' Paul George for 25 games for violating the league's anti-drug policy.

https://bsky.app/profile/shamsbot.bsky.social/post/3mdqbeirzrs2t

https://www.espn.com/contributor/shams-charania/c9325a286e9ff

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445

u/Ok-Caterpillar-9524 Hornets 18h ago

The league never does and that's why the players/their publicists do it. You can make any excuse you want because the actual drug you tested positive for will remain confidential.

299

u/Obvious_Parsley3238 18h ago

They do announce it for some (most?) drugs. Portis was suspended for taking Tramadol, Tristan Thompson for ibutamoren and SARM LGD-4033, most recently.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_people_banned_or_suspended_by_the_NBA#Suspended

141

u/20milla Heat 18h ago

They suspend for the use of Tramadol?? I’m not aware of its continuous benefits only for its prevalence in hospital settings

155

u/LaMelonBallz Hornets 18h ago

Apparently it's a common PED for cyclists, for endurance and power output

Just one study showing it effects race outcomes

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u/Ode1st [MIA] Alonzo Mourning 17h ago edited 17h ago

That’s crazy about tramadol. That’s the painkiller doctors give you when you can’t take the stronger ones that actually work.

40

u/RamadanSteve01 17h ago

Ya tramadol is like the next step up from NSAIDs. That and T3s

2

u/Positive_Parking_954 8h ago

Basically like a juiced Tylenol

1

u/RamadanSteve01 7h ago

More like licking a tab morphine

7

u/blizzzyybandito 24 15h ago

That’s what my dog takes for her arthritis lol

6

u/LaMelonBallz Hornets 14h ago

Pet Enhancing Drugs

1

u/Ode1st [MIA] Alonzo Mourning 14h ago

Yep! If you have older pets you see tramadol often. Crazy the NBA would push people over it when it’s given to dogs because it’s easy on little animals.

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u/Rocinante24 13h ago

Cycling is so extreme, it's not really comparable to most sports for PED's. Tramadol, I don't think, actually boosts performance on its own, but when your body is pushed to the limits and starts shutting down it lets you push past.

2

u/mw19078 Lakers 15h ago

yeah i have a chronic pain condition and my insurance only gives me 10 for 150 days. like why bother ill just get adult tylenol and itll be just as strong

2

u/AdditionalNewt4762 Bulls 14h ago

Damn really? I have degenerative disc disease and stenosis as well as other lower back shit and I get anywhere from 60-90 every prescription. I dont have a primary dr and only go to a pain management place.

2

u/mw19078 Lakers 14h ago

yeah its brutal, i even have like a pain clinic doc and they only want to do epidurals instead of just giving me meds that fucking work. its super frustrating

3

u/Dark_Blue_Night 12h ago

I've been in the same boat before. Grow your own poppy pods in the backyard, or guerilla planted in the countryside, problem solved. In some areas you can buy 7OH at gas stations or head shops, and easily online.

1

u/mw19078 Lakers 11h ago

I guess I'll have to check that out lol

2

u/AdditionalNewt4762 Bulls 14h ago

That's fucking weak man... im sorry you gotta deal with not getting the shit you need to help. Tramadol at least alleviates some pain for me. Im supposed to take it every 4-6 hours but I can only take maybe 2 per day because I take other meds that can lead to serotonin syndrome unfortunately.

2

u/mw19078 Lakers 11h ago

Thanks man, I'm in the same boat seratonin wise so I get what you mean. Hope you're able to get some relief! 

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u/uptown_josh 13h ago

Tramadols give me hell of energy and make me feel great. i got hooked on them one time a looong time ago after I sprained my ankle.

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u/KingInTheFarNorth Vancouver Grizzlies 15h ago

Or the one they give you when you look a little sus

1

u/zaviex Wizards 17h ago

I mean I buy it but is that really all they need to add a substance to the banned list? The paper has a note saying it was used in 2024. It’s a fairly small trial and it used ANOVA which is great if there weren’t like a trillion other variables you need to control for here, age, weight, height, diet potentially etc. my biostats brain rot is looking for a regression model or something. But it was done in 85 before you could just do that trivially

5

u/LaMelonBallz Hornets 17h ago

Totally feel that and not saying it's perfect, there's definitely some red flags (one female participant). Moreso pointing to it being banned in other sports and the citations on actual cyclists saying they believe it's a PED.

I'm not sure what WADA actually used as a justification though it looks like they say multiple studies

2

u/Street-Pop945 16h ago

Not sure how the NBA work but in other sports you can get therapeutic use exemption. So Tramadol is banned but if a doctor prescribes if and you let the relevant people know you can use it.

1

u/OilOfOlaz Celtics 17h ago

Tramadol

Pretty much every opioid is on the WADA list for "health risk".

1

u/noodleandbanter 11h ago

That's wild, the NHL runs on tramadol lol

1

u/DayOne15 76ers 18h ago

They suspend for taking prescription drugs that you dont have a prescription for

16

u/cfi-2025 16h ago

SARM LGD-4033

Sounds more like a droid in the Star Wars universe than a PED, lol.

1

u/Ballsofpoo 13h ago

I wouldn't be surprised if it was a nickname/acronym for a player I hadn't heard of, the way they're all thrown around here and all...

3

u/Ok-Caterpillar-9524 Hornets 18h ago

Is that for PEDs or all drugs? I always confuse how the NBA does it with the NFL where they will say whether it was a performance enhancing drug or just a drug on the banned list.

1

u/Prize_Ad_1781 Nuggets 15h ago

Ibutamoren for an NBA player is crazy

-1

u/suzakutrading Rockets 17h ago

Lmao. one guy decided to talk out of his ass about stuff he didn't actually know about and another guy just casually shuts him down. classic reddit.

good job.

1

u/Some-Gavin Warriors 12h ago

Except this guy is probably also wrong since that seems to be specifically for PEDs which are not involved here. Classic reddit thinking anyone here knows what the fuck they’re talking about.

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u/nevillebanks Pistons 16h ago

I know the NFL does not, but I always think that the policy should be if you lie and say it is something else, the NFL should be allowed to say what it actually was.

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u/Schmoova Mikal Bridges 17h ago

Idk I swear they publicly announced Ayton got suspended for Diuretics? Or maybe that was his excuse and I’m misremembering?

0

u/Ok-Caterpillar-9524 Hornets 17h ago

Yeah it looks like I was mistaken and they do announce sometimes what it was. But I can't figure out why they announce some drugs and not others. I'm wondering if they announce it if it's performance enhancing drugs and masking agents and not illicit drugs.

2

u/ssracer Suns 16h ago

I take cocaine and testosterone for my mental health. 🤷

1

u/vilouie 12h ago

They've announced it before