Dixon Officially Suspended for One Year
By petevolk
Former Terp star Juan Dixon was officially suspended for one year by FIBA today, basketball’s international governing body. Dixon tested positive for the anabolic steroid nandrolone on February 11 of this year, and will be able to play again on February 11, 2011. According to Wikipedia, nandrolone can be found naturally in the human body in small quantities, although there is no citation to back that up.
It’s obviously very disappointing whenever you hear of such a talented athlete taking performance-enhancers, but it’s more than that for Maryland fans here. This is a guy that a lot of kids grew up idolizing, someone who you could point at and say “That’s the guy who turned around Maryland basketball” (of course, Gary Williams would be a compelling argument there too, but Dixon certainly did his part). Dixon is arguably the best player in Terps history, and is still a fixture at Maryland games, sitting courtside with his son and interacting with fans.
Dixon is currently a free agent; his former team (Unicaja) announced that they will not sign him before the start of this season. When he returns from his suspension, he’ll most likely get signed by another European club.
TerrapinStation wishes Juan the best, and hopes that he can get it back together this February.