J.R. Smith was the NBA’s certified bad boy for several reasons both related and unrelated to basketball. Over the years, following his arrival to the league in 2004, Smith was very impactful, coming off the bench. At times, he would light up from the three-point arc and shoot lights out, leading his former teams to victories. He was also famous for certain bloopers as well. All in all, he was still a very talented individual.
J.R. Smith’s character was a product of what fame can do to a person who craved it. All the money and popularity often diverted his on-court antics to his off-court drama. Smith would often get involved in unlawful activities during his off time from basketball. Back then, the use of Marijuana was not encouraged by the country. Almost every city and state banned its usage. Likewise, even sports organizations did not approve of athletes who abused the drug.
J.R. Smith gets into trouble with the NBA for smoking Marijuana
J.R. Smith was a regular user of Marijuana. Although it may be too negative to his body, the NBA stood firm in their athletes posing as prime examples to its audience. Discipline was encouraged by the league. Back in 2013, Smith was coming off a beautiful season averaging Sixth Man of the Year numbers. He even won the award. Unfortunately, the former New York Knicks star went through knee surgery that offseason and was sidelined from starting the season along with his teammates.
But to add fuel to the fire, Smith was booked for the usage of Marijuana. This further extended his 2013-14 season debut as the NBA suspended him for five games after he was deemed fit enough to return to play. Back then, the league offered three chances to pass their frequent drug tests. Failure to adhere to their Anti-Drug Laws over three times would result in a suspension.
J.R. Smith received a lot of backlash from his peers back then and eventually was labelled as a bad athlete. These days, NBA players have been far more respectful towards the NBA’s Anti-Drug rules. The NBA recently announced a 7-year agreement in which Marijuana will no longer be classified under their list of illegal substances.
Sources: NBA players will no longer be prohibited for marijuana under the new seven-year Collective Bargaining Agreement. It’s been removed from the anti-drug testing program, a process that began during 2019-20 season.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) April 1, 2023
John Collins and Deandre Ayton were the two players who were recently booked for usage of performance enhancers. Either way, in Smith’s case, he has been excelling and trying to get his life back on track by attending college at North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University. He also began a career in golf.
