The NBA’s fine-everything-possible policy does not rest during the off-season.  The Associated Press reported that Minnesota Timberwolves president of basketball operations David Kahn was fined $50,000 Friday for remarks concerning recently-acquired forward Michael Beasley’s past marijuana use.

Kahn described Beasley as “a very young and immature kid who smoked too much marijuana (while playing for the Miami Heat)," during an interview with Twin Cities ESPN Radio affiliate KSTP.  Kahn did add that Beasley is through smoking marijuana.  Beasley, who was the second overall pick in 2008 has underachieved thus far in his career.

In April 2010, CNBC Sports Biz reporter Darren Rovell talked about the issue of marijuana use in professional sports in a piece titled “Why Sports Teams Worry About Marijuana Use.”  In the article, Rovell says of the affects on the floor, “marijuana really doesn’t have any athletic enhancing benefits. By many accounts, it inhibits performance. It impairs memory, hurts coordination and could affect heart rate.”

Rovell also notes that more often than ever, pro sports teams are looking into players’ past and current marijuana use when drafting.  Maybe Miami should have looked into Beasley’s use.  Well, maybe Kahn shouldn’t have let that cat out of the bag, or at least the NBA thinks so.

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Matthew Coller is a staff member of the Business of Sports Network, and is a freelance writer. He can be followed on Twitter

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