Bobby Portis won’t be suitable to return to the Bucks until finally April 8. (Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Photographs)
Milwaukee Bucks ahead Bobby Portis was suspended 25 video games with out buy violating the NBA’s anti-drug method, the league announced Thursday. He examined optimistic for Tramadol.
Portis’ agent, Mark Bartelstein, launched an announcement declaring the violation was essentially a mix-up. Bartelstein reported Portis believed he was getting a pain medication identified as Toradol, that is authorised, but alternatively took Tramadol, which is not. The statement mentioned Portis was specified the incorrect medication by an assistant of his, and it absolutely was “an honest blunder.”
“Bobby Portis is absolutely not a drug abuser,” Bartelstein wrote. “Bobby operates tirelessly on rising hisperformance in all pure, authorized and healthful techniques, but he created a error and took a tablet that unknowingly he shouldn't have. Today, in this instance, I am so deeply disappointed the NBA chooses to interpret its coverage so strictly, and which the policy won't enable for another end result for an genuine miscalculation with pure intentions.”
In a press release released with the Bucks, Portis reported, “I truly feel horrible and identify that I’m chargeable for what I set in my body. From The underside of my heart, I desire to apologize to your Bucks Group, my teammates, coaches, spouse and children and fans. I give every little thing I've to the court and may terribly overlook enjoying game titles to the Bucks for the duration of this time.”
Bucks common supervisor Jon Horst stated that though “it is a quite challenging list of conditions for Bobby and our workforce … we 100% assist Bobby.”
The twenty five-game suspension would make Portis ineligible to return until eventually the Bucks’ April eight home recreation from the Minnesota Timberwolves. Such as that match, the Bucks might have just four standard-year online games remaining. Milwaukee now sits in fifth place inside the Eastern Meeting, just one activity back again on the Indiana Pacers.
Portis has played in 46 games with the Bucks this year, averaging twenty five.2 minutes, thirteen.seven points and eight.three rebounds per game.