Legendary Basketball Figure Dikembe Mutombo Ends Life at 58
Entered the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in 2015, he was an eight-time NBA All-Star and bagged the league's Defensive Player of the Year award four times.
His defensive skills – topping the league in blocked shots for five straight seasons throughout an 18-year career and retiring as the NBA's second-highest blocker – were complemented by his massive, joyful grin.
Hailing from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), the 7-foot-2-inch Mutombo landed at Washington's Georgetown University on an academic scholarship in 1987, and gained fame after joining the basketball team in his second year.
He was chosen fourth in the 1991 NBA Draft by the Denver Nuggets.
Outside the court, the towering center was renowned for his humanitarian work. In 1997, two years before calling it quits in the NBA, Mutombo founded the Dikembe Mutombo Foundation with a goal to improve education and living standards in the DRC.
In 2022, the NBA revealed that Mutombo was receiving treatment for a brain tumor in Atlanta.
The league confirmed that he was surrounded by his family when he passed away on Monday.
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver released a statement, saying, “Dikembe Mutombo was unbelievably larger than life. On the court, he was one of the greatest shot blockers and defensive players in NBA history. Off the court, he poured his heart and soul into assisting others.
“There was no one more deserving than Dikembe to serve as the NBA’s first Global Ambassador. He was a humanitarian in his core. He adored what basketball could accomplish to create a positive impact on communities, especially in his native Democratic Republic of the Congo and across the African continent. I was fortunate to journey the world with Dikembe and observe his generosity and compassion personally. He was always available at NBA events over the years – with his contagious grin, booming deep voice, and characteristic finger wag that captured the hearts of basketball fans of every generation.
“Dikembe’s indomitable spirit persists in those he helped and inspired throughout his extraordinary life. I am among many whose lives were influenced by Dikembe’s big heart, and I will deeply miss him. On behalf of the entire NBA family, I extend my heartfelt sympathies to Dikembe’s wife, Rose, and their children; his numerous friends; and the global basketball community which he genuinely loved and which loved him back,” Silver’s statement said.
This situation is evolving, and we will keep you updated.
His passion for sports extended beyond basketball, as he also supported several soccer teams in his homeland.
After retiring from professional basketball, Mutombo continued to promote the importance of physical activity and sports in his philanthropic work.
