Ainge would have to be high to trade for Larry Sanders

Sherrod Blakely breaks out all his best marijuana jokes in a story about Milwaukee’s Larry Sanders. There’s plenty of speculation the 25 year old center has worn out his welcome just one season into his 4 year, $44 million contract.

Having tested positive for marijuana for a third time (that’s what triggered the five-game suspension in April) would obviously require a certain level of care and sensitivity by any team to try and ensure that Sanders gets whatever help he needs off the court as well as on it.

But the concern with Sanders is even with all the services one could want, there’s a pretty good chance that he’ll be suspended again for using marijuana.

And considering he’s just at the start of his new, long-term deal, making a play for Sanders would be a huge, huge gamble on Boston’s part.

While the 6-foot-11 center apologized to the Bucks for his five-game suspension, Sanders defended his use of the banned substance.

“I believe in marijuana and the medical side of it. I know what it is if I’m going to use it,” Sanders said in an interview with the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel and nba.com. “I study it and I know the benefits it has. In a lot of ways we’ve been deprived. You can’t really label it with so many other drugs that people can be addicted to and have so many negative effects on your body and your family and your relationships and impairment. This is not the same thing. The stigma is that it’s illegal. I hate that. Once this becomes legal, this all will go away. But I understand for my work it’s a banned substance. I will deal with the consequences and I apologize again to my fans for that.”

Call me old-fashioned, but I prefer to stay away from a player who publicly advocates for the legalization of dope. Fortunately, the league has softened it’s rules for marijuana. Another positive test would result in a 10 game suspension.

Determining if Sanders is worth the risk depends on the deal.

What if the Celtics could land Sanders for Gerald Wallace and a future 1st round pick? Ok, that might be ambitious. Maybe the Celtics could get Sanders for a future 1st rounder and the $10.3 million TPE acquired in the Nets deal.

Let’s spark up the discussion…