SAN ANTONIO – Former San Antonio Spurs forward Stephen Jackson publicly voiced his opinion about the NBA’s stance on legalizing marijuana in an interview with TMZ Sports on Thursday, saying he used to smoke after games.
“I smoked (weed) my whole career. I had a hell of a career (and) missed no games,” Jackson said. “I’m not going to say it helped, but as far as after the games coming down and relaxing, yeah, it helped.”
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Jackson, who competed in the league for 14 seasons, joined the Spurs in 2001 playing through the 2003 season.
He left the Spurs as a free agent, but later returned to San Antonio for the 2012 and 2013 seasons before being waived by the team one week ahead of the postseason.
Jackson was also a key member of the Spurs’ 2003 championship run and in the TMZ Sports interview, he made it known “weed” helped his entire NBA career.
Stephen Jackson: 'I Smoked My Whole Career,' Legalize Weed in the NBA https://t.co/0nroEpB425
— TMZ Sports (@TMZ_Sports) January 5, 2018
Jackson said in the interview that although many players claim they smoke before games, he never “played high” just after games.
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The TMZ Sports interview with Jackson comes months after former NBA Commissioner David Stern said marijuana “probably should be removed from” the league’s list of banned substances.
In the interview, Jackson agreed with Stern that the NBA should take it off the list.
“They can’t control it. They (NBA) won’t let it be legal until they can control it,” Jackson said in the interview.