Former Chicago Bull Jay Williams estimates 75-80 per cent of NBA players use marijuana.
"It’s easy for doctors to prescribe you Oxycontin and look I was addicted to it for five plus years so I know," Williams said in an interview with FOXBusiness.com. "But when you say marijuana you get a reaction, ahhh, it’s a gateway drug."
Despite 23 states allowing doctors to prescribe marijuana for medical use, the NBA bans the drug completely. If a player is found to have marijuana in his system during any of the four random drug tests conducted by the league, he will be entered into a marijuana recovery program. A second failed test results in a $25,000 fine. A third gives the player a five-game suspension.
"You see pictures of guys in California going in and getting their medical marijuana cards," Williams added. "And I’m not just saying athletes, let’s talk about society. I know a lot of people that use it. It’s something that the whole world is becoming more progressive with. So it’s about time some of these entities do as well."
Williams, the second overall pick in the 2002 draft, had his career derailed and ultimately ended after getting seriously injured in a motorcycle accident in June 2003.
