Magic’s Hedo Turkoglu suspended 20 games for steroid use

Orlando Magic forward Hedo Turkoglu received a 20-game suspension after testing positive for methenolone, an anabolic steroid.

Turkoglu claims the steroids were taken in error this summer while in Turkey. He received the medication from a trainer while dealing with a shoulder injury but neglected to check the ingredients to ensure it didn’t contain anything on the NBA’s list of banned substances.

”As a player this is the worst situation that you want to be in,” Turkoglu said. ”I’m just sorry to put the organization in this situation. … I should have double-checked and researched and shouldn’t be in this situation.”

”It’s been really nightmare,” Turkoglu said. ”It wasn’t a really good year for me. Now I’m facing this. As a player, you face a lot of injuries. It just comes and goes. But this kind of situation, you don’t want to put yourself in. This is the worst one I’m dealing with now.”

While PEDs use has been big news in other sports (baseball and to a lesser degree in the NFL) Turkoglu becomes only the eighth NBA player suspended for it’s use under the NBA’s drug-testing policy for PED use which has been in place for four years. In 2011 Mavs OJ Mayo was suspended, prior to that in 2009, another Magic player, Rashard Lewis- now with the Miami Heat, was suspended 10 games.