Rapper, cannabis activist and businessman Snoop Dogg appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live! on Monday night in a special edition of the show hosted by TV sports personality Stephen A. Smith.

The duo discussed the issue of cannabis use by professional athletes, a topic that became hot last month when sprinter Sha’Carri Richardson was banned from competing in the Tokyo Olympics after testing positive for THC in the state of Oregon, where cannabis use is legal.

Richardson’s banning triggered a public debate involving the White House, several congressional lawmakers, the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency and the World Anti-Doping Agency.

In the live interview, Smith said he routinely recommends sports athletes to “stay off the weed,” but only because he “doesn’t want them losing their money.”

The rapper agreed with the remark, acknowledging that when it comes to athletes who have “commissioners and rules and regulations and tests,” testing positive for cannabis use can put a dent in their career.

However, Snoop Dogg said he thinks sports leagues should relax their attitude towards weed use from professional athletes.

“What happens is, a lot of times athletes take these pills and they get addicted to these pills and it still doesn’t give them the relief that they need for their pain or whatever they’re going through,” said the rapper, who also heads the cannabis investment firm Casa Verde Capital.

He added that through CBD, THC,  marijuana, or cannabis athletes can find relaxation and get the medical treatment that they deserve without having those later side effects.

“So I push for that in sports because baseball doesn’t test for marijuana, hockey doesn’t test for marijuana, so it should be the same way for basketball and football,” said Snoop Dogg.

Photo: Photo by Steve Jennings/Getty Images on Wikimedia Commons