O.J. Mayo has been kicked out of the NBA and cannot return for two years, barring appeal, after failing a drug test, the NBA announced Friday.
The free agent guard, who spent the last three seasons with the Bucks, must have tested positive for a “drug of abuse,” according to the NBA’s Anti-Drug Policy. Those drugs are listed as “amphetamine and its analogs (including, but not limited to, methamphetamine and MDMA), cocaine, LSD, opiates (heroin, codeine and morphine), and PCP.”
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No other form of drug use warrants a player being kicked out of the league as a first penalty:
(1) Drugs of Abuse: If a player tests positive for a Drug of Abuse during Random Testing or Reasonable Cause Testing, he will be dismissed and disqualified from the NBA. A player will also be dismissed and disqualified from the NBA if he is convicted of, or pleads guilty, no contest or nolo contendre to, a crime involving the use or possession of a Drug of Abuse.
Chris "Birdman" Andersen was the last player to face the NBA's toughest drug-related penalty, 10 years ago.
Mayo, 28, has seen his performance decline on a steady basis over his eight NBA seasons. He was drafted third overall in 2008 by the Timberwolves, then promptly traded to the Grizzlies in a deal that focused on Mayo and No. 5 overall pick Kevin Love.
Mayo has seen his scoring average drop from 18.5 points a game as a rookie in 2008-09 to 15.3 in a career revival season in 2012-13 with the Mavericks to 7.8 last year with the Bucks. He was not expected to be brought back by the team after shooting 37.1 percent from the field.
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Mayo's season — and, for now, his NBA career — ended on a broken ankle in March. The Bucks' release said, "Mayo accidentally tripped descending his stairs at home."
