After his return to the Basketball Bundesliga, former junior national player Jason George talks about his positive doping test and his drug addiction at the time.
More than two and a half years after his positive doping test, professional basketball player Jason George explained his view of things for the first time and gave insights into his mental life. In an interview with the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, he says that his doping violation was always based on an anesthetic and not a performance-enhancing intention. He is currently under contract with the Würzburger Baskets.
Emerging career as Junior national player
Jason George was considered a great talent in German basketball. He played in the junior national team and moved from Bundesliga club Ulm to FC Bayern Munich at the age of 17. There he got playing minutes in the Bundesliga and also in the Euroleague. After an internal incident, George will be loaned to Chemnitz at the end of 2022.
As George now tells us, he suffered greatly from the pressure to perform during this time. Further incidents led him to try to suppress his mental problems with the help of drugs. It all started with marijuana, which was then followed by cocaine. “I needed the drugs, they became my medicine for the pain of not feeling any fun playing basketball anymore,” said the 24-year-old.
Positive doping test due to taking crystal meth
Then in April 2023 came the shocking news: In a doping test by Jason George, the substances methylenedioxymethamphetamine (addictive substance category) and methamphetamine (also known as crystal meth) were detected. According to his own statement, George never knowingly took the drug crystel meth. He suspects that he had consumed cocaine that was contaminated with it.
George is banned for two years and four months for the anti-doping rule violation. In retrospect, the two-time international sees this ban as a liberation. “Something drastic had to happen. Now I know that the positive test was ultimately the best thing that could have happened for me,” he said looking back.
He also sees the fact that the ban lasted longer due to the Crystel Meth traces as a positive coincidence. “Three or six months probably wouldn’t have been enough for me to understand what to do. Everything has a reason. That’s how I see it. I needed the time.”
George as Positive example for NADA
As the National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA) explained, Jason George and his management were cooperative and open to solutions from the start. The focus was not only on the punishment imposed, but also on prevention when reintegrating into sport. George wanted to regain his passion for basketball and not just pick up where he left off.
Thanks to the problem-free cooperation and the early confession, NADA was quickly convinced that the substances were not intended to improve performance, but were part of a drug problem. This ultimately led to the ban being reduced to two years and four months.
Now the 24-year-old is back in Bundesliga business. With the Würzburg Baskets he would like to slowly build on his old achievements again. But this time with less pressure and more fun.