A year ago, ESPN blogger Henry Abbott published an interview with Josh Howard at ESPN.com. Near the end of said post: I think a lot of people have that problem [smoking marijuana]. How that could stop me from getting drafted, though? How many guys in the lottery smoke pot? The weed thing, just about everybody smokes.Last week, Dallas Morning News writer Brad Townsend penned a story presumably
Asked whether he caught any flak for that interview, Howard said no. When asked to quantify the extent of his use, he said he got "a little crazy" in high school but uses it "less" now and never during the season.Today, ESPN is promo'ing the Hades out of a Sportscenter segment on the subject, roughly two hours before Howard's Mavericks tip off Game 3 ... on ESPN. Tuned-in Brinson quotes the promo: "And did Josh Howard admit using marijuana in a radio interview? Oh-ho. You bet he did! Don't miss his shocking comments!" The radio interview? On Michael Irvin's ESPN Radio show.
He emphasizes that marijuana is "nothing I'm needing," unlike some NBA players who "have to have it."
There was (surprisingly) no mainstream attention paid to Abbott's post (published on ESPN.com, and probably featured on ESPN's NBA landing) last year. Little attention (and no attention from ESPN) has been paid in the week since one of the nation's largest newspapers ran a story -- with a direct quote admitting use -- on the matter. Yet today the subject is headline news? ESPN waited a week so they could get both their own soundbite and the proper marketing platform ... despite having the scoop a year ago. Bizarre, bizarre synergy.
Bill Ingram of Hoopsworld has a sensible opinion on the matter.

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 12)
4-25-2008 @ 6:45PM
aleksthethird said...
It doesn't help that Josh looks kind of tuned out on the court of late.
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4-25-2008 @ 7:10PM
bet super bowl said...
Smoke it up playa. I don't care.
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4-25-2008 @ 7:30PM
slim jim said...
This really isnt an issue. Alcohol is scientifically proven to be worse for your body and brain functionality but we don't even think for a second to condemn or think differently about drinkers(which we shouldnt) I played minor league Baseball as a pitcher and had better mound presence while pitching high. Whatever works for an individual is fine by me as long as no harm is done to others. The whole problem with this story is that American culture holds todays athletes and celebrities up like they are Gods and not human beings. I am no doctor but I promise you their bodies pump blood just like ours.
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4-25-2008 @ 7:38PM
slim jim said...
Imagine a Bill Walton or Babe Ruth, Mantle, et cetera playing in todays media scabbed world. Private lives are private lives but everyone is so scrunitized now.. I would love to see how todays media would treat off the field "habits" of players mentioned above... They seemed to have OK careers with off the field "habits" Every man to himself to do with himself.
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4-25-2008 @ 8:02PM
dra said...
The players today dont take weed smoking as serious as the players did back in the day.We need to let these players know that weed can kill you and kill you very fast.I would hate to here about another NBA player dying of a weed over dose it is happing too much too many of our young kids are dying http://www.roundtripflights.org
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4-25-2008 @ 8:25PM
henryclemente said...
I love weed!
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4-25-2008 @ 9:10PM
steven said...
weed is not addictive and you can not overdose from it these are the true facts whether we like it or not
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4-25-2008 @ 9:12PM
frank said...
Like the Mavs don't need extra help;
Wrong both ways and BAD timing and in my book the Mavs are done ! 4 years in a row.
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4-25-2008 @ 9:25PM
Julius said...
Dra. You can't die from weed. Nobody has ever died from Marijuana. I don't know how old you are, but thats funny.
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4-25-2008 @ 9:26PM
aleksthethird said...
There are two issues here: The first one is extremely bad timing for the Mavs. Ok, nothing interesting about that. The second one is that saying all NBA players smoke weed might be bad rep for the NBA. Thing is that none of the die hard NBA fans I know don't have a problem with that. It's the bandwagon fans which might be scared away by the vision of ballers smoking the shit out of their brain in the off-season. So, in a blurred way, Howard does the real fans a favour by making the NBA more authentic. Or this all is nonsense.
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4-25-2008 @ 10:02PM
shannon morris said...
hey idiots its illegalllllllll hello
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4-25-2008 @ 10:05PM
shannon morris said...
yo playa your fired its illegal da!!!
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4-25-2008 @ 10:08PM
shannon morris said...
WEED IS ADDICTIVE U JUST SMOKE TO MUCH OF THIS CRAP!! HEY ITS ILLEGAL!!
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4-25-2008 @ 10:37PM
Minette Sweeney said...
The only one's here upset or complaining because some people smoke weed (off season if they're pro athletes) are those who are totally ignorant of the substance and have bought into the government's BS propaganda. The govt. is protecting the interests of the Petrol Chemical industry and the Forestry industry both of which are the reason for the disinformation that was issued in the 30's when pot was make a controlled substance. People really should be educated, the plant was a threat to those industrys and middle class, white America bought into the BS then and are still buying into it.
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4-25-2008 @ 10:37PM
dfaf said...
look what weed can do to you....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZbsBj8NRufw&feature=related
marijana kills~!
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4-25-2008 @ 11:02PM
Peter Jovanovic said...
Smoke pot,smoke pot,everybody smokes pot.I say make it legal.Save us tax payers millions of dollars.
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4-25-2008 @ 11:23PM
WitchDrgn said...
For comment 14, Websurfer, while some act completely idiotic when stoned I can assure that there are millions of highly intelligent people who indulge. My IQ falls between 128 and 131 depending what test I take. You however seem completely uneducated since you know nothing of what you speak. Pot kills nobody, ever, which is much better that what one can say in regards to alcohol which is legal. How about all of the LEGAL perscription drugs that our government pimps to it's citizens? How many people die from that crap? For post 13 I have only this to say, anyone who types in all caps is an idiot. Is that how you write, in all capital letters? Please do some research on the subject and see how many people kill innocent victims on highways because they were a little stoned and compare it to those who die at the hands of drunk driving due to legalized alcohol. It seems the ones who aren't stoned are more retarded.
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4-25-2008 @ 11:24PM
Reagan said...
really? wow.
to me, it hasn't been effecting him and his ability to play.
if we never would have found out, everybody would have said, "hes going through a shooting slump"
but now, its the pot that is making him shoot bad.
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4-25-2008 @ 11:49PM
George B Vieto said...
Typical ESPN to protect their jocks when they admit breaking the rules by illegal drug use.
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4-26-2008 @ 12:13AM
Web said...
LOL......who doesn't smoke weed!!! This is funny!
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