Apr 28, 2013; Los Angeles, CA, USA; San Antonio Spurs shooting guard Tracy McGrady (1) on the court against the Los Angeles Lakers in game four of the first round of the 2013 NBA playoffs at the Staples Center. Mandatory Credit: Richard Mackson-USA TODAY Sports

While most players deny ever using or ever thinking of using performance enhancing drugs, Tracy McGrady isn’t most players.

The now retired T-Mac recently told NBA’s Open Court that he thought about using PED’s to return from injuries:

“I’ve never said this to nobody,” McGrady said. “Because I was playing at such a high level for so many years, and when I had my knee injury, I was doing everything in my will power to get back to that level. Naturally, I couldn’t do it. Because I just didn’t have the strength, I didn’t have the confidence, and I just didn’t believe that I was going to get there doing it naturally.

“I actually considered — I considered — getting an advantage. And whatever that was, doing it illegally … I considered that to get back.”

While it’s a shameful thought, it’s an honest one and one that was likely eating McGrady internally.

T-Mac was one of the best players of his generation, especially at his peak, though injuries – like they have done to so many players before – ended that reign at the top far more prematurely than things should have been.

The NBA is thought to be well behind both the NFL and MLB in regards to PED use, though, as we’ve seen in recent years from players failing drug tests and admissions like McGrady’s, it’s far more prevalent than many assume.