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Milwaukee Bucks forward Bobby Portis was suspended 25 games without pay for violating the NBA’s anti-drug program, the league announced Thursday. He tested positive for Tramadol.
Portis’ agent, Mark Bartelstein, released a statement claiming that the violation was essentially a mix-up. Bartelstein said Portis thought he was taking a pain medication called Toradol, which is approved, but instead took Tramadol, which is not. The statement said that Portis was given the incorrect medication by an assistant of his, and it was “an honest mistake.”
“Bobby Portis is absolutely not a drug abuser,” Bartelstein wrote. “Bobby works tirelessly on increasing his performance in all natural, legal and healthy ways, but he made a mistake and took a pill that unknowingly he should not have. Today, in this instance, I am so deeply disappointed that the NBA chooses to interpret its policy so strictly, and that the policy does not allow for a different result for an honest mistake with pure intentions.”
In a statement released by the Bucks, Portis said, “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.”
Bucks general manager Jon Horst said that while “this is a very difficult set of circumstances for Bobby and our team … we 100% support Bobby.”
The 25-game suspension would make Portis ineligible to return until the Bucks’ April 8 home game against the Minnesota Timberwolves. Including that game, the Bucks would have just four regular-season games remaining. Milwaukee currently sits in fifth place in the Eastern Conference, one game back of the Indiana Pacers.
Portis has played in 46 games for the Bucks this year, averaging 25.2 minutes, 13.7 points and 8.3 rebounds per game.
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