Basketball veteran center Al Jefferson of the Charlotte Hornets has been cleared to play by the team after missing six games due to a calf injury. However, his five-game suspension for violating the terms of the NBA/NBPA Anti-Drug Program will soon take effect.

Jefferson will begin to serve the suspension on Wednesday night's game against the Orlando Magic. The NBA issued the suspension while he was still in the team's injured list, and games missed to injury cannot count toward suspensions; the big man will be out of action another week.

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During the six games of Jefferson's absence, the Hornet have gone 4-2 helping the team to get off to a 14-9 start, which placed the ballclub in the fourth spot with Indiana and Miami for the Eastern Conference.

Aside from Orlando, he will also miss games at Toronto, Washington, Houston and Boston. Jefferson will be allowed to return to game action on December 26 against the Memphis Grizzlies.

As outlined in the collective bargaining agreement between the players' union and the NBA, players are suspended by the league for five games as the mandated punishment for a third positive marijuana test and not an HGH or performance-enhancing-drug violation.

For the 2015-16 season, he was averaging 13.7 points and 6.4 rebounds per game for the Hornets, below his career averages of 16.9 points and nine rebounds per game. 

Al Jefferson played high school basketball for Prentiss High School in Mississippi. He skipped college and entered the 2004 NBA draft, where he was picked 15^th overall by the Boston Celtics. He has formerly played for Minnesota Timberwolves and Utah Jazz as well.

Jefferson was a 2014 All-NBA Third Team and a 2005 NBA All-Rookie Second Team member. He is in the final season of a three-year contract with the Hornets.

Tags NBA news, NBA 2015, Charlotte Hornets, Al Jefferson, Eastern Conference, Toronto, Orlando, Miami, Indiana, anti-drug