Nuggets' Hickson to serve five-game suspension

The NBA announced today that J.J. Hickson of the Denver Nuggets has been suspended without pay for five games for violating the terms of the NBA/NBPA Anti-Drug Program.

Hickson's suspension will begin with the first game of the 2014-15 NBA regular season.

A five-game suspension typically indicates a third positive test for marijuana under the NBA's testing protocol, but no official or unofficial indication of the reason for Hickson's violation has been reported or announced.