Ok, with all the hype of the juice and the MLB, when was the last time we found out about a player taking steroids in the NBA?? Do any of ya'll think that any players take it or would it even do players any good to take them?? I think that NBA players dont really need to be all bulk, but I do think it can help them become more tough to prevent injury... Here is what I could find on the NBA policy on steroids... Frequency of testing • First-year players tested once during training camp and three times during regular season • Veteran players are tested once during training camp • Reasonable cause testing for all players Penalties • First positive: Five-game suspension • Second positive: 10-game suspension • Third positive: 25-game suspension • A player will be dismissed and disqualified from the NBA if he is convicted of, or pleads guilty, no contest to, a crime involving the use or possession of steroids.
I most definately think players in the NBA take steroids. It would surprise me if its not widespread in all sports. In my opinion it's not even as much of a toughness/preventing injury thing as it is an endurance thing.
i agree 100% i think it is naive if you think that top athletes do not use drugs or steroids. Ofcourse they use them.
I don't know about NBA players, but I bet their is a ton of it in high-school basketball. The pressure to do everything possible to make it is too intense for players to turn it down. The influx of very physically developed young players into the league has also raised my eyebrows.
Endurance sports = doping, not steroids (generally). NBA players, by and large, would be handicapping themselves by taking steroids and bulking up. The league is run by quickness, and adding weight makes things tougher. There are only a few players that make their living with brute strength (Shaq, Wallace, Fortson), but that's about it. Check out Jordan in his prime. He was lean as could be. The NBA should be more concerned about uppers (ephedrine, etc). I know that a large number of players (including Francis) throw back Red Bulls before games, and there's a strong possibility that some go further. On the flipside, there is steroid use among college/HS kids trying to fill out their body. That's where more testing needs to happen. Evan
Expanding: Take a look at the BMI for a few players. 18-25 is what a non-athlete "should" weigh: Jermaine O'Neal - 26.5 Ben Gordon - 25.0 Rasheed Wallace - 23.5 Kobe - 25.4 Tim Duncan - 26.5 KG - 22.5 Ray Allen - 24.3 Amare Stoudamire - 25.6 Ben Wallace - 25.7 (but if you use his real height instead of that 6-9 BS it's 27.7) Shaq - 31.6 Fortson - 25.8 For a better comparison, consider these guys: Craig Biggio - 25.8 Carlos Delgado - 28.7 Jason Giambi - 28.7 Barry Bonds - 29.3 Sammy Sosa - 29.8 I'm not selling BMI as a steroid test, seeing as Shaq is very obviously on the Whopper not the juice. However, it does help out your suspicion radar a bit. Evan
Although since many/majority of basketball players are ectomorphs, I think these numbers can be misleading.
Just in case anyone else doesn't know because I know I didn't... The ECTOMORPH Definitive "Hard Gainer" Delicate Built Body Flat Chest Fragile Lean Lightly Muscled Small Shouldered Takes Longer to Gain Muscle Thin The extreme ectomorph physique is a fragile and delicate one. The bones are light, joints are small and muscles are slight. The limbs are relatively long in proportion and the shoulders droop. The ectomorph is a linear physique. Straight up and straight down, and may appear longer than he or she really is, due to the length of limbs coupled with lack of muscle mass developed on those limbs. The ectomorph is not naturally powerful and will have to work hard for every ounce of muscle and every bit of strength he or she can gain. Other Ectomorph Traits The extreme ectomorph may have long fingers, toes and neck are long. A pencil neck you could say. The features of the face are sharp, and the shape of the face is triangular. The lower jaw is somewhat receding. The skin tends to burn easily. Extreme ectomorphs may suffer from extremes of temperature. Due to the great body area in relation to muscle mass, the ectomorph may suffer from great heat, and due to low body fat, the ectomorph may suffer from great cold. The hair is fine and grows quickly and is sometimes difficult to keep in place.
Actually, I think that helps make the point. It's not a coincidence - that's the body type you need to have to excel in the NBA game. If a player were to bulk up on steroids a la Bonds or David Boston (30.8 BMI), it would take them away from that body type (light and long to bulky and long). How high you jump and how quick you are matter 100x more how much you bench in the NBA. And when you start adding pounds of muscle, that's all the more weight you have to lift when you leap. And again, I tried to make it clear that this isn't a litmus test. It can't tell the difference if the person is overweight or built like a tank. But if you know that the person is cut (Shaq gets excluded), and the BMI is over 28, you might get suspicious. Only so many people can build that much muscle (even with intense lifting reigms) naturally. Evan
But as a simple factor of height/body type, NBA players BMI's are going to naturally skew low. It's hard to imagine any player being as developed, muscle wise, as Ben Wallace, but his BMI is still well below that of Bonds/Sosa, simply as a function of his height. So even a juicing ectomorph is going to have a BMI that looks comparatively unsuspicious.
In Australia we take the drugs in sport issue very seriously. So when I see the WEAK bans that U.S. competitions hand out to drug takers.....Im shocked. Its no wonder a player would get on the juice when he hardly get a penalty for it. Over here in our NRL (nrl.com.au) competition you get a 2 year ban for steroid abuse, you get a 1 year ban for using "Recreational drugs".
I think it is more of a money issue... I think that some players think that if they can get big in turn they can play better and then land that big contract...
I disagree ... many guys could benefit from steroids. The league is not 'run by quickness'. You mention Jordan, but he really bulked up towards the end of his career, and he was a lot bigger when he won his last 3 championships than he was for the first 3 and before. He lifted weights constantly during the season. Steroids could only help a guy like Kelvin Cato. A Dennis Rodman. Yao Ming, for that matter. Basically any 4/5 could stand to get stronger.
