By Keith Idec

NEW YORK – Adam Kownacki knows Jarrell Miller isn’t exactly a popular figure in boxing these days.

Three months after Miller’s performance-enhancing drug ordeal cost him a shot at Anthony Joshua, the brash Brooklyn heavyweight understandably continues to take criticism. Kownacki respects fans’ frustration with what Miller did, but the unbeaten heavyweight contender remains supportive of his close friend and frequent sparring partner.

“He’s a good guy, you know?,” Kownacki told BoxingScene.com following an open workout Wednesday at Gleason’s Gym in Brooklyn. “He made a mistake, maybe got some bad advice. He just made a mistake.”

The 30-year-old Miller tested positive for three prohibited PEDs – Endurobol, EPO and HGH – early in the spring. His removal from the Joshua fight granted Andy Ruiz an opportunity he exploited by dropping the British superstar four times and stopping him in the seventh round June 1 at Madison Square Garden.

“I just told him to stay humble,” Kownacki said of his conversation with Miller. “Put your head down, don’t say anything stupid, stay out of the media, serve your time, because he got a six-month suspension. It is what it is. Serve your time. Do the right thing. You made a mistake. Just go on and never do it again.”

Brooklyn’s Kownacki isn’t sure how fans will treat Miller once he returns to the ring from the WBA’s six-month suspension.

“We’ve gotta see,” Kownacki said. “I think the fans will decide. That’s what’s so great in America. People decide. So, we’ve gotta wait and let the people choose for themselves.”

Kownacki decided long ago that he would never even try PEDs. He is part of the WBC’s “Clean Boxing Program,” through which he is tested randomly by the Voluntary Anti-Doping Association.

“That’s why I’m in the VADA testing, so they can test me whenever they need to,” Kownacki said. “Hopefully, that picks up and it gets used more because we’re risking our lives. I don’t think it’s fair when somebody gets an advantage, takes steroids and PEDs. [They] recover faster, have bigger muscles than a guy like me.”

The 30-year-old Kownacki (19-0, 15 KOs) will headline a card in his home borough’s Barclays Center for the first time Saturday night. He’ll oppose three-time heavyweight championship challenger Chris Arreola (38-5-1, 33 KOs, 2 NC) in a 12-round main event (FOX; 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT).

Keith Idec is a senior writer/columnist for BoxingScene.com. He can be reached on Twitter @Idecboxing.