Marijuana. Cannabis. Weed. Pot. Herb. Grass. Chronic. Reefer. The devil’s lettuce. Whatever name you prefer, Kevin Durant loves it.
“He smokes even more weed than you would think,” said Matt Sullivan, who appeared on The Dan Le Batard Show to promote his new book, Can’t Knock the Hustle, chronicling the Nets’ unprecedented “super” team comprised of Durant, Kyrie Irving and, more recently, James Harden. “I was at his house at one o’clock in the morning. The entire place just reeks.”
Marijuana, a Schedule 1 controlled substance since 1972, has become widely accepted in recent years with the majority of U.S. states moving to legalize, or at least decriminalize, its recreational use. As Sullivan would be the first to tell you, no team was more relieved than the Nets when the NBA stopped testing for marijuana last year.
“DeAndre Jordan told me he was pretty happy that—low-key everybody forgets this because of COVID—but they got rid of weed testing,” said Sullivan. “I think nobody’s happier than the Nets with that.”
Even before states began legalizing weed, pot was still plenty prevalent in the NBA. Former All-Star Kenyon Martin estimated in 2018 that about 85 percent of players smoke.
“He only smokes in the car, because he doesn’t want to—I don’t know if it’s get caught or that’s just his happy place,” shared Sullivan, seemingly contradicting his earlier remarks about Durant’s house smelling of weed. “The bodyguard/housemate who got in trouble for pushing away P.J. Tucker in the playoffs, he’s just kind of around and takes him down to the car and they blaze.”
Many business-savvy athletes have seen the recent marijuana boom in America as an entrepreneurial opportunity. To wit, Durant has served on the advisory board of Canopy Rivers, a marijuana investment and acquisition firm based in Canada, since 2019.
“[Durant] doesn’t have a girlfriend. He doesn’t go on crazy vacations,” said Sullivan. “He doesn’t do anything other than hoop. Like nothing. He’s boring as hell. So going out to him is just blazing.”
Durant doesn’t seem to be making much effort to hide his weed habit, which could present trouble at the upcoming Tokyo Olympics. It was announced Thursday that one of America’s fastest sprinters, Sha’Carri Richardson, had tested positive for marijuana (which she claims helped her cope with her mother's death), preventing her from running the 100-meter dash, though she’ll still be eligible to compete in relays after her 30-day suspension is up.
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