A former NBA star is hoping teens will follow his words and not his actions. Our Brandon Walker has more on Chris Herren's journey.

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PITTSFIELD, Mass. -- His journey took him from the heights of hoop stardom, to the pits of a hell where Chris Herren never dreamed he'd find himself.

"Here I was. I was a McDonald's All American. I had the world out in front of me," said Chris Herren, former NBA player.

And then, an addiction to alcohol, heroin, and cocaine led him to homelessness and near death.

Now, the former Boston Celtics guard is sharing his tale of missed shots, personal fouls and losses. He was the keynote speaker Thursday at the Pittsfield Boys and Girls Club Scholarship ceremony.

He dominated the court at Fresno State University, as profiled in a recent ESPN documentary. Later, he went on to play for the Denver Nuggets, and his home team, the Celtics.

He had it all, until his addictions ripped it from him. He now shares his story with teens, hoping they won't do what he did.

"Making an impact on a few of them and hopefully deterring them from what I had to go through in life," said Herren.

He's written a book, and now runs an organization called Hoop Dreams, training future stars of the hard wood. He's been clean since 2008, though he says the scars are something he'll never beat.

"It's something that find peace with and something you can walk around with very comfortably," said Herren.

A story of triumph, better yet a message with meaning for teens, in the hopes they won't travel down the same road.