Milwaukee Bucks’ Bobby Portis Suspended For 25 Games For Drug Policy Violation, Claims He ‘Accidentally’ Took Wrong Pill

Milwaukee Bucks forward Bobby Portis has been suspended for 25 games by the NBA after violating the league’s anti-drug policy, forcing him to miss most of the rest of the season.

Portis tested positive for tramadol, a pain medication prescribed for severe cases in adults. His agent, Mark Bartelstein of Priority Sports, stated that the incident was accidental.

“I am devastated for Bobby right now because he made an honest mistake and the ramifications of it are incredibly significant,” Bartelstein said.

“Bobby unintentionally took a pain medication called tramadol, thinking he was taking a pain medication called Toradol. Toradol is an approved pain medication that he has used previously and that teams and players use for pain and inflammation at times. Tramadol, however, is not an approved pain medication and was just recently added to the banned substance list this past spring. The tramadol pill he took came from an assistant of his, with a valid prescription for the painkiller, which he mistakenly told Bobby was Toradol. This was, again, an honest mistake that was made because of the similarity in the names of the drugs and the fact they both serve a very similar purpose. Bobby was using this anti-inflammatory pain-reducing medication to deal with an elbow injury he had this past fall and believed he was taking Toradol to alleviate some pain in preparation for that night’s game.”

Portis will not dispute the suspension.

The Bucks, currently fifth in the Eastern Conference with a 29-24 record, now have a roster spot available to make a move, while Portis’ suspension will cost him $2.85 million.

He can return to action on April 8 against the Minnesota Timberwolves, with just four games remaining in the regular season.

In 46 games this season, Portis has averaged 13.7 points and 8.3 rebounds, placing him sixth in scoring and second in rebounding among NBA bench players. He has been a top-three finalist for Sixth Man of the Year in each of the past two seasons and ranks second in total points scored by a reserve over the last three years.