'Fast Eddie' Johnson: 2-time NBA All-Star and ex-Atlanta Hawks player dies at 65 while serving life in prison
Former Atlanta Hawks star Eddie Johnson died at 65 while serving a lifetime NBA ban in prison, according to Associated Press and multiple reports. Although he died on October 26, the news of his death was confirmed on November 3 by the Rocker-Cusack Mortuary in Leesburg. An undisclosed illness is believed to be the reason behind his death.
At 53, he was handed a mandatory life sentence in 2008 after being found guilty of sexual assault of an eight-year-old girl. He was serving the sentence at Santa Rosa Correctional Institution in Milton, Florida. According to ESPN, the mortuary added he will be buried at Weirsdale Community Cemetery in Florida on Saturday (November 7).
Johnson was picked up by the Hawks in the third round of 1977's draft. After spending eight seasons with the franchise where he also earned two All-Star recognitions, he ended his career after short stays with the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Seattle Supersonics. The site also added he was nicknamed "Fast Eddie" because of his explosiveness on the court.
His stats saw him average 15.1 points in his 10 seasons. The best performance came in the 1980-81 season where he averaged 19.1 points and also started for the All-Star side. He also played 20 games in the Continental Basketball Association for the Tampa Bay Thrillers in the 1986–87 season to work his way back to the NBA.
In addition, he also battled a cocaine addiction all through his playing career that saw him being slapped with several suspensions. He went into rehabilitation in 1986 and after a failed mandatory counseling, he was suspended by the NBA in 1987. Johnson's career was shortened by arrests and suspensions.
His life continued to spin out of control following his banishing from the NBA. He was arrested and convicted for several crimes over the years, including burglary, robbery, assaulting a police officer and shoplifting. He also admitted that he had frequent drug problems which had initially cost him a promising and a decorated career. Johnson was taken off the Hawks' suspended list on November 21, 1981.