Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports
Donovan Mitchell scored 71 points against the Chicago Bulls drawing attention from around the world, and maybe from the NBA drug test administrators.
It’s been a running joke for years — the randomized drug tests of professional sports leagues always seem to focus in on a player the day after a historic performance. Corey Brewer was randomly drug-tested the day after he scored 51 points back in 2014. Bradley Beal was randomly drug-tested after back-to-back 50-point games in 2020. Heck, Michael Carter-Williams and De’Aaron Fox once got randomly drug-tested after posting bulked-up workout photos on Instagram.
Now you can go ahead and add Donovan Mitchell to the list after he scored 71 points against the Chicago Bulls and was then immediately tagged for a test.
Why did the NBA drug test Donovan Mitchell?
The NBA’s drug-testing program, which no longer includes marijuana, is administered according to rules set forth in the CBA. It is not clear from the public version of the document what the mechanism is for the random selection of players and dates, however, there is a provision that allows players to be targeted for tested for “reasonable cause.” This kind of test is triggered “In the event that either the NBA or the Players Association has information that gives it reasonable cause to believe that a player is engaged in the use, possession, or distribution of a Prohibited Substance.”
Is scoring 71 points in an overtime game against a struggling Chicago Bulls defense “reasonable cause” to assume the use of something like Human Growth Hormone? Maybe reasonable people can disagree.
The truth is, this is probably just a hilarious coincidence.
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