Former NBA player Cliff Robinson has revealed he used marijuana before to help him treat anxiety. He added that without cannabis, his career would not have been that long.

As reported by Chris Kudialis of the Las Vegas Sun, Robinson spoke of his experience at the annual Cannabis Science Conference and shared his own take on using pot:

“If you play 18 years in the NBA and perform over an 82-game schedule, you’re going to deal with anxiety issues and your ability to relax.”

Athletes in major sporting leagues have come out and professed their preference for using medical marijuana instead of prescription painkillers. States in the U.S. are becoming more welcoming to the idea of marijuana legalization and players' confessions add to that growing support.

The NBA and NFL are penalizing players for low doses of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), which is considered the relaxing ingredient of marijuana. On the other hand, the MLB and NHL are more relaxed in their rules regarding marijuana use.

Earlier this year, ex-New Jersey Nets and Denver Nuggets player Kenyon Martin claimed that 85 percent of NBA players are smoking weed privately. This goes beyond the players as recently retired Matt Barnes also cited presidents, coaches, and even general managers, relying on pot to seek reprieve from the unforgiving mental and physical pressure of the NBA.

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Current commissioner Adam Silver is open to revising the medical marijuana policies of the league. It remains to be seen if the changes will happen next season but being talked about in the open as opposed to being a taboo topic before is a step in the right direction for proponents of medical weed.

Cliff Robinson, Kenyon Martin, and Matt Barnes get more freedom to talk about it now that they are retired without risking getting fined or suspended. If more studies can support their claim, medical marijuana can surely change the landscape of the NBA for years to come.