who's being implicated here? he named no one specific except himself. is "josh howard smokes weed" a news story? it's decriminalized in many places and prrscribed medicinally in many others.
those who think the league doesn't know that 75% of its players smoke weed from time to time (or more) are...misinformed.
Josh said that it was widely known that most NBA players use marijuana and in case you forgot, it is illegal. So what Josh has done is reveal that most of the league uses illegal drugs and that the league is turning a blind eye to it. Now this could put Stern in a position where he might have to act so he won't look like he is ignoring illegal activity in his league.
Sorry, but this is incorrect on several counts. First, although marijuana use is illegal, that is moot from a league perspective, except that marijuana is also on their list of banned substances. 10 years ago when marijuana use was not banned (but was obviously still illegal), whether players used or not was none of the league's business (as long as they didn't get arrested). Second, as they said during the DAL-NO game 3, simply saying you use an illegal substance is not punishable under the CBA; only a positive drug test can incur drug-related discipline. On top of that, just because Howard says a lot of players do it is not evidence that they do (although he's right, of course). Stern has no legal recourse in this case; all he can do here is directly or indirectly suggest that Howard shut his mouth. As with most things, Stern is only concerned as to whether this tarnishes the league's image, not whether the behavior is actually happening. As several people have pointed out, lots of NBA players smoke pot, and it doesn't seem to particularly affect their games or lives.
The league, most of its employees and many of its fans are well aware that many players do this, but they don't care, because it doesn't affect their games or lives in any measurable way. What they DO care about is if the league become known as a "pothead" league, and it affects their image and therefore their revenues. If this story disappears, as it probably will, so will the NBA's response, because they would rather let the issue be than keep it in the public's minds.