Former NBA Commissioner David Stern said that he is "convinced that marijuana does have medicinal qualities and should be taken off the league's list of banned substances," according to ESPN.com. Appearing in an interview with former NBAer Al Harrington for Uninterrupted, Stern said, "I'm now at the point where, personally, I think it probably should be removed from the banned list." During Stern's 30-year tenure as commissioner, marijuana became "more tightly regulated in the NBA." Stern: "It was generally known at some point, until we tightened the rules, that a lot of our players were smoking a lot of marijuana." He said that a series on CNN on medical marijuana "helped change his mind." He believes there is "universal agreement that marijuana for medical purposes should be completely legal" (ESPN.com, 10/25). Stern said, "We have to change the collective bargaining agreement and let you do what is legal in your state" (CHICAGO SUN-TIMES, 10/26). Warriors coach Steve Kerr said that he has "tried marijuana twice to help with complications stemming from back surgery." Kerr said of the NBA permitting players to use medicinal marijuana, "I do think it'll happen eventually. It becomes about how you do it, how you regulate it. You've got to differentiate between medicinal marijuana and recreational marijuana" (S.F. CHRONICLE, 10/26). NBA Exec VP/Communications Mike Bass in a statement said, "While Commissioner [Adam] Silver has said that we are interested in better understanding the safety and efficacy of medical marijuana, our position remains unchanged regarding the use by current NBA players of marijuana for recreational purposes" (NBA.com, 10/25).
