Michael Sweetney, the powerful Georgetown forward who became a lottery pick for the New York Knicks, died this week at 43.

His wife, India Sweetney, announced the news Thursday on social media. He died Wednesday at Newark Beth Israel Medical Center in New Jersey. No official cause of death was released by the family.

“To know Mike Sweetney was to love him,” India wrote. “No one loved him more and he loved no one more than his family. His children were the light of his life, and he lived every day to give them the best life possible. He’s been my best friend for 30 years and my husband for almost 20.”

She described him as the best son, brother, friend, father and husband anyone could ask for.

Born Oct. 25, 1982, in Washington, D.C., Sweetney starred at Oxon Hill High School in Maryland before arriving at Georgetown.

In three seasons with the Hoyas, the 6-foot-8, 275-pound forward averaged 18.2 points, 9.2 rebounds and 1.9 blocks. As a junior in 2002-03 he posted 22.8 points, 10.4 rebounds and 3.2 blocks per game, earning All-America honors and becoming a Naismith Award finalist.

He still ranks among Georgetown’s all-time leaders in points, rebounds and blocks despite leaving after his junior year.

The Knicks took him ninth overall in the 2003 NBA Draft. He spent two seasons in New York and two with the Chicago Bulls, averaging 6.5 points and 4.5 rebounds in 233 games.

After leaving the NBA he played overseas and later coached, including as an assistant at Yeshiva University.

In August 2026, he was hired as boys basketball coach at Golda Och Academy in New Jersey.

The Knicks, Bulls, Georgetown and the NBA issued statements of condolence.

“Michael was an incredible person who will be missed by many,” the Knicks said. Georgetown remembered him as “forever a Hoya.”

Sweetney is survived by his wife and three children.

Friends and former teammates remembered a gentle giant whose impact off the court—especially as a coach, mentor and family man—outlasted the numbers from his brief NBA career.