Michael Ray Richardson, who starred for the Knicks and Nets during eight NBA seasons, has died at age 70, the teams announced Tuesday.
The four-time NBA All-Star was diagnosed with prostate cancer shortly before his death per his attorney and friend John Zelbst.
“The basketball world and anyone Michael came in contact with lost a great sportsman,” Zelbst said. “He lived life to the fullest. He overcame the most incredible odds to accomplish what he did in life. He serves as an example on how to redeem yourself and make something of yourself. I think he is the greatest NBA player that has never been inducted into the Hall of Fame. Incredible player — player, person and family man.”
Richardson played in the NBA from 1978-86 and was the No. 4 pick of the 1978 Draft by the New York Knicks. He became a three-time All-Star with New York and made the All-Star team again with the New Jersey Nets in 1984-85.
The 1985 NBA Comeback Player of the Year also averaged a career-high 20.1 points, 8.2 assists, 5.6 rebounds and a league-best 3.0 steals per game for the Nets during the 1984-85 season, per ESPN.
Richardson, however, was banned from the NBA in 1986 for violating the league’s drug policy for a third time. The two-time NBA all-defensive first-team selection had substance abuse problems stemming from cocaine use.
“My darkest day was when the guy [from the NBA] met me at the airport and told me I was banned from the NBA,” Richardson told Andscape in May. “I will never forget that day. They waited for me in Newark. As soon as I got off the plane, I knew what was going on. After that, I went home and went on a few days binge. And then after that, I came to. I got myself into it. I have to get myself out.”
In 2024, Richardson co-authored a book about his life called, “Banned: How I Squandered an All-Star NBA Career Before Finding My Redemption.”