Assemble your all-reefer team of NBA trail blazers
To celebrate the league’s progress in the pot, help us honor the retired Hoopers who continue to pave the way
Earlier this month, the NBA announced that it would continue to turn a blind eye to cannabis for the 2021-2022 campaign. The league stopped random testing in the 2020 bubble and has stuck with the decision ever since. The directive is expected to become an integral part of the next collective agreement.
The current agreement between the Players Association (NBPA) and the NBA expires after the 2023-2024 season. However, cannabis could become a hot topic with both players and the league eligible to opt out after the 2022-2023 season.
Viola owner and retired pro Al Harrington said yesterday that three active “top 20 stars” had told him they would be talking about cannabis later this year.
Past generations have paid the price
Between drug testing, criminal charges, and racial myths claiming that weed stifles leadership and work ethic, many NBA legends have had to keep their love for the plant low. Other aspiring stars had their careers distracted because of the stigma of the plant.
In celebration of yet another 420 friendship season, Leafly felt it appropriate to honor the soaring pioneers who paved the way for that moment. Without further ado, light one for Leafly’s first all-reefer team.
Don’t forget to check out @Leafly on social with the five starters you’d roll one with!
* Editor’s note: No active players were charged in the making of this piece
Stephen Jackson and Matt Barnes
These retired bad boys and active influencers named their hit podcast “All The Smoke” for good reason.
Their reputation for uncompromising back and forth may have limited their chances in the league, but those same traits have made them superstar journalists and entrepreneurs today.
Cliff Robinson
Uncle Cliff was a cannabis pioneer as both a gamer and an entrepreneur. He was one of the first professionals to admit he’d dealt with performance anxiety before training and games.
He also came to Al Harrington as one of the first players with his own line of products. Unfortunately, Robinson died in 2020 after a battle with lymphoma.
Robert Parrish and Bill Walton
These great Hall of Fame men were proud hippies at a time when smoking weed and promoting peace were radical ideas for mainstream America.
It’s not hard to believe that Walton smoked a lot of dope if you’ve heard his game-to-game commentary, but many hoop-minds are surprised to learn that it wasn’t by chance Parrish was nicknamed The Chief.
The Celtic great made headlines in 1993 after a Fed-Ex package containing a few ounces of green was intercepted by drug sniffing dogs en route to his home.
Chris Webber
The Fab Five legend produced a song for Nas called “Blunt Ashes” when he was still playing in 2006. He also lost a FILA confirmation because he was stopped with weed by US Customs on a return trip from Puerto Rico.
Now he’s starting a cannabis compound in his hometown of Detroit with cultivation, consumption zones and professional training for Cookies U.
Shawn Kemp
Viewed vertically, the Reign Man has been high over the edge for most of his career.
He also looked at the legal and professional ramifications of his cannabis use. But in 2020, the devastating dunker of the 90s made history when it got involved in one of Seattle’s cannabis dispensaries.
Allen Iverson
The Answer told the All The Smoke podcast about a surprise check-in from legendary Georgetown coach John Thompson when he was a freshman on campus. Iverson remembers rushing into the bathroom to try to wash the high off his face in the sink before his mentor realized he’d hit the weed.
Alvin Gentry
The veteran trainer was outed as 420-friendly by a hilarious tweet this spring that has since been deleted.
The former Pelicans chief apparently protested to the New Orleans people last spring when he surprised a casual smoker by sneaking up and asking, “Got some good weed, huh?”
If you want a hit, just ask, Coach! There’s no way the skippers will do drug tests if our next choice isn’t cut off.
Phil Jackson
The 13-time NBA champion has been known to have used cannabis, LSD, and psilocybin mushrooms throughout his career as a player and coach. But did he ever get Kobe or Mike to hit a Jay before training?
Rasheed Wallace
The star of the infamous Portlands “Jail Blazers” team from 2000 definitely smoked on Oregon’s best alongside teammates Damon Stoudamire, Bonzi Wells and the soaring JR rider whose name JAY-Z once rhymed with “marijuana” in a freestyle .
Kareem Abdul-Jabar
The NBA’s all-time scorer was a pioneer in social justice and cannabis reform, defying stereotypes about athletes, smokers, and black men at a time when overt acts of racism were still the norm.
The 7-footer was charged and fined several times for weed after retiring, but he’s been a staunch advocate to this day.
Kenyon Martin
Martin once estimated that 85% of the league used cannabis, a statistic that weighed heavily in recent discussions about test withdrawals and other restrictions.
Weed never stopped Martin from making 15 seasons in the league or raising a son with a promising professional career.
Zach Randolph
This dominant tall man avoided jail time in 2017 by entering into a plea deal for possession with intent for distribution.
We don’t know if Zach was in the black as the underground queen, or if his personal packs are just big enough to feed a small town. Either way, that’s his business. And his charges should be cleared along with all other cannabis nonviolent offenders.
Steve Nash
The NBA’s only Canadian-born MVP attended college in the Bay Area, so he’s no stranger to the work.
In 2020, All The Smoke will be told, “Cannabis has really made my life better. Now I have more energy to be a father because I get those hours of sleep … It’s legalized and we’re educated so that it’s not like the stigma around it. ”
Now Nash is the head coach of the only player whose name is short for one eighth (3.5 grams) of flowers.
Monta Ellis
Is one of many bright stars whose careers have collided with the NBA’s marijuana testing guidelines on the street. He missed the first five games of the 2017 season due to a positive test and never returned to his former all-star form.
JR Smith
After a 16-year career straight out of high school, Smith is currently majoring in Liberal Studies while playing NCAA golf at North Carolina A&T, an HBCU in Greensboro, NC.
Born in New Jersey, he won two rings as a professional. He was also named the sixth man of the year, but had to be banned in 2013 for failed tests. People don’t forget! For example, JR’s name was trending on Twitter in 2020 after news broke that the NBA was suspending cannabis testing.
Sounds like the perfect piece to close your all-reefer roster!
Don’t forget to check out @Leafly on social with the five starters you’d roll one with!
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