Tracy McGrady Considered Using PEDs To Return To NBA From Knee Injuries [VIDEO]

Tracy McGrady was one of the best scorers in the NBA during his prime but he was slowed down by injuries. Frustrated by nagging injuries, the 15-year NBA veteran admitted that he considered using performance-enhancing drugs to regain his old deadly form, according to a RealGM report.

In an interview with Ernie Johnson in NBA TV's Open Court, McGrady discussed how he struggled to get his old form back after suffering one knee injury after another, saying that he reached the point at which he believed that he could not do it in a natural way.

"I've never said this to nobody. 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," McGrady said.

Desperate to get back to the physical form that made him a two-time scoring champion in the NBA, McGrady admitted that he considered doing it in an illegal way.

"I actually considered getting an advantage and whatever that was, doing it illegally, I considered that," McGrady said, referring to using PEDs. "Just because the era that we were in, especially baseball with a lot of guys doing it, obviously they're doing it to stay healthy, to stay on the field or to stay at that level they were playing, I considered doing that."

But after knowing that using PEDs could lead to bigger troubles not only with regards to his career but also to his physical health, the Florida native said that he decided not to "cross the line."

"I never crossed that line because I read up on it and seen the side effects that could happen," said McGrady, who announced his retirement from the NBA in August after playing sparingly with the San Antonio Spurs in the 2013 NBA Playoffs.