Over the past couple of years, we’ve seen more athletes express interest and report positive treatment from using CBD and THC products to help in recovery and injury. Nowhere is the advocacy being more considered than in the world of basketball. Just last month, the NBA revealed it was exploring medical cannabis as an option for players—though they were worried about a certain “crazed attorney general”—and former pro John Salley advocated for clean cannabis for everyone.
Adam Kemp is the latest hooper to join the movement. He starred at Marist College from 2010-14 and has played pro basketball in Belgian and Bulgarian leagues. He began using CBD topicals to help with muscle soreness following games. But Kemp stopped after learning the World Anti-Doping Agency banned CBD at the time, fearing he might lose his job.
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A back injury placed him out of commission and Bulgarian medical professionals treated him with non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and corticosteroid injections. Kemp said the injections didn’t provide much pain relief and made him feel horrible. Because of the injections, “I was sweating and jittery all day long,” he wrote in a CelebStoner blog post. “Overall, I hated this period.”
Kemp also started experiencing “motor tics” from his Tourette’s syndrome around this time. The pro hoopster says injuries or any broken bones always causes those motor tics to be more prevalent. Medical marijuana has scientific backing in treating Tourette’s syndrome, as do CBD oils. Kemp says the latter have been “incredibly effective for me.”
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Before using CBD products, I could hardly exercise or do any physical activity during the day. Even just walking for an extended period was painful.
After using CBD products, I could lift weights, swim and do yoga and a variety of exercises. It allows me to move pain free, so that I’m able to do more rehabilitation exercises for my back. Instead of being immobile and losing all my strength, I’ve been able to correct muscular imbalances.
Kemp states that he uses CBD every day, as he trains to restart his professional basketball career. His story is just another example of the medicinal powers CBD can provide.
