The NBA suspended Milwaukee Bucks forward Bobby Portis 25 games without pay for violating its anti-drug policy, the league announced Thursday.
Portis tested positive for Tramadol, which is not only banned by the NBA but is also on the World Anti-Doping Agency’s list of banned substances.
Mark Bartelstein, Portis’ agent, issued a statement saying that his client ‘unintentionally’ took Tramadol, mistakenly thinking it was Toradol and said they support the league’s anti-drug policy and Portis is ‘absolutely not a drug abuser.’
‘The Tramadol pill he took came from an assistant of his, with a valid prescription for the painkiller, which he mistakenly told Bobby was Toradol,’ Bartelstein said in a statement. ‘This was, again, an honest mistake that was made because of the similarity in the names of the drugs and the fact they both serve a very similar purpose. Bobby was using this anti-inflammatory pain-reducing medication to deal with an elbow injury he had this past fall and believed he was taking Toradol to alleviate some pain in preparation for that night’s game.’
Both Tramadol and Toradol are pain medications, but only Toradal is approved by the league and its players’ union.
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‘I was dealing with an elbow injury and using an NBA-approved medication for pain and inflammation,’ Portis said in a statement. ‘During that time, I made an honest mistake and took a pain-reducing anti-inflammatory pill that is not approved. I feel horrible and recognize that I’m responsible for what I put in my body. From the bottom of my heart, I want to apologize to the Bucks organization, my teammates, coaches, family, and fans. I give everything I have on the court and will terribly miss playing games for the Bucks during this time. I will continue to work hard and be ready for our long playoff run. Thank you for your support. I appreciate it more than you know.’
Tramadol has been labeled a class IV controlled substance by The Food and Drug Administration for more than a decade because of its potential for addiction and is usually used as an opioid pain medication. Other Class IV medications include Ambien and Valium.
The 25-game ban for Portis will cost him $2.85 million in salary and the Bucks can sign a replacement starting with the sixth game of the suspension.
Portis is in his fifth season with the Bucks and helped the team win the NBA title in 2021.
He is averaging 13.7 points, 8.3 rebounds, and 2.2 assists this season for Milwaukee, which begins the second half of the season tonight against the Los Angeles Clippers. The Bucks have 29 regular season games remaining and have a 29-24 record, good for the fifth seed in the Eastern Conference.
