Four-time NBA All-Star with Knicks & Nets dies at 70, his name is...

Former NBA star Michael Ray Richardson, who was banned from the league in the 1980's because of drug use, has died at the age of 70.

How did Michael Ray Richardson die?

Richardson took his last breath on Tuesday, in Lawton, Oklahoma, after being diagnosed with prostate cancer, his attorney John Zelbst told Andscape:

"The basketball world and anyone Michael came in contact with lost a great sportsman. 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."

A look at Richardson's legendary NBA career

Hailed from Denver, Richardson starred at the University of Montana before being picked by the New York Knicks with the fourth overall pick in the 1978 NBA draft.

Famously called as "Sugar," he played eight seasons in the NBA with the Knicks, Golden State Warriors and New Jersey Nets, claiming four All-Star selections and topping the league in steals three times.

Richardson's best NBA season

The 1985 NBA Comeback Player of the Year delivered his best season with the Nets in 1984-85, averaging 20.1 points, 8.2 assists, 5.6 rebounds and a league-leading 3.0 steals per game.

Tragic end of Michael Ray Richardson's NBA career

Richardson's career was cut short in 1986 following he was banned from the NBA for a third violation of the league's drug policy. He later revealed his struggles with 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 recalled in an interview in May. "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."

After his exit from the NBA, he continued his career in the Continental Basketball Association and continued to play in Italy and France before taking retirement in 2002.

Michael Ray Richardson's career in coaching

After ending his career as a player, he turned to coaching, guiding the Albany Patroons and the Oklahoma/Lawton-Fort Sill Cavalry to various titles in the late 2000s.

He also coached Canada's London Lightning from 2011 to 2014, and organised summer basketball camps for underserved communities along with former Nets teammate Otis Birdsong.