Tribunal Suspends Players
Basketball New Zealand has accepted a Sports Tribunal of New Zealand decision to suspend two Otago Nuggets players until June 2 after they tested positive for cannabis.
Guard Nat Connell and forward Steven Robinson both returned positive samples after the Otago v Taranaki Dynamos NBL game in Dunedin on March 28, and have served provisional suspensions since April 24.
Both admitted their violations in respective tribunal hearings. By the time their suspensions end, they will have missed six games for the Nuggets, returning for their final outing of the NBL season against Canterbury Rams.
“We’re pleased that the new process was implemented immediately and effectively, and the players were stood down while the matter was resolved,” says BBNZ chief executive Dale Stephens. “We are happy to abide by the penalty imposed by the tribunal.”
In the past five years, Drug Free Sport NZ has conducted more than 400 tests within the sport of basketball with five returning positive, all for cannabis. Four of those have been within the past 12 months.
“As any sports organization would be, we are concerned with positive tests,” says Stephens. “We continue to work with Drug Free Sport to enhance our education for all participants in basketball and remain totally committed to the policies of Drug Free Sport.”
