When the NBA season was suspended due to COVID-19, the league suspended drug testing as well. That’s about to change now that the season will resume later this summer.
NBA will test for PEDs but not recreational drugs
Shams Charania of The Athletic shared that the NBA and NBPA have agreed to conduct testing for performance-enhancing drugs (PEDs). However, the league will continue to keep recreational drug testing suspended for the rest of the season.
As it’s prescribed on the collective bargaining agreement between the NBA and NBPA, players who test positive for performance-enhancing drugs will be suspended for 25 games for a first violation, 55 games for a second violation and are banned from the league for a minimum of two years for a third violation.
Players can be randomly drug tested up to four times per season, and twice in the offseason.