Dikembe Mutombo, a basketball Hall of Famer, one of the best defensive players in NBA history and a longtime NBA global ambassador, died Monday of brain cancer, the league announced. He was 58 years old.
His family revealed two years ago that he was undergoing treatment in Atlanta for a brain tumor. The NBA announced that he passed away surrounded by his family.
“Dikembe Mutombo was just larger than life,” NBA commissioner Adam Silver said. “On the court, he was one of the greatest shot blockers and defensive players in NBA history. Off the floor, he poured his heart and soul into helping others.”
Mutombo was unique in many ways. The way he playfully wags his finger at his opponent after blocking a shot, his height, his deep, gravelly voice, his big smile. Players of this generation have always been drawn to Mutombo, and Cameroon-born Philadelphia 76ers star Joel Embiid looked to Mutombo as an inspiration.
“It’s a sad day, especially for us Africans, and really for the entire world,” Embiid said Monday. “Aside from what he accomplished on the basketball court, I think he was even better off the court. He’s one of the players I look up to in terms of not only having an impact on the court, but also making an impact off the court.” He’s done a lot of great things for a lot of people. He was a role model for me. It’s a sad day.
Mutombo spent 18 seasons in the NBA, playing for Denver, Atlanta, Houston, Philadelphia, New York and the then-New Jersey Nets. The 7-foot-2 center from Georgetown was an eight-time All-Star and three-time All-NBA selection, averaging 9.8 points and 10.3 rebounds per game during his career and was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2015.
He also helped No. 8 seed Denver defeat No. 1 seed Seattle in the first round of the 1994 Western Conference Playoffs, contributing to one of the league’s most iconic playoff moments. . This best-of-five series saw the No. 8 player defeat the No. 1 player for the first time in NBA history.
“I just can’t believe it,” Toronto president Masai Ujiri said on Monday, immediately after hearing the news of Mutombo’s death, pausing several times to overcome his emotions. You have no idea what Dikembe Mutombo meant to me. …He is the one who made us. That guy is a giant and an incredible person. ”
Mutombo last played in the 2008-09 season and since retiring, he has devoted himself to charity and humanitarian work. He speaks nine languages and founded the Dikembe Mutombo Foundation in 1997, focused on improving the health, education and quality of life of the Congolese people.
And on Monday, LeBron James occasionally pointed out with a laugh that Mutombo doesn’t necessarily improve the health of others.
“My favorite memory of Dikembe Mutombo? On my birthday in Cleveland, he broke my face with his elbow,” Los Angeles Lakers star James said Monday on Mutombo’s life. He spoke for several minutes to express his condolences. “I didn’t even get a chance to talk to him about it. But yeah. I don’t remember how old I was…my first stint was in Cleveland, I think I was 22?”
“I went to the hall and grabbed Dikembe’s elbow, and if anyone knows about Dikembe’s elbow, I don’t feel good about it. He broke my face, so I went to the hospital that night. , I wore a mask for a little while. That’s my memory of Dikembe,” James said.
James was getting into the details. The play happened late in the first half on Dec. 29, 2004, the day before his 20th birthday.
Mutombo told reporters that night that he did not know how James was injured. “He was laying there thinking, ‘What happened, what happened?'” Mutombo told the Houston Chronicle after the game. “All I know is that I was running toward the basket. … LeBron turned around to stop me from running toward the basket. A collision occurred.”
The Hall of Famer’s son, Ryan Mutombo, said in a eulogy posted on social media that his father “loved others with all his might.”
“My dad is my hero because he just cared,” Ryan Mutombo wrote. “He continues to have the purest heart of anyone I’ve ever known.”
Mutombo served on the boards of numerous organizations, including Special Olympics International, the CDC Foundation, and the United States Fund for UNICEF National Board of Directors.
“There was no one more qualified to serve as the NBA’s first global ambassador than Dikembe,” Silver said. “He was a humanitarian at heart. He loved the positive impact the game of basketball could have on communities, especially in his homeland of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and across the African continent.”
Mutombo is one of three players to win the NBA’s Defensive Player of the Year award four times. The others are reigning DPOY winner Rudy Gobert of the Minnesota Timberwolves and Hall of Famer Ben Wallace.
Milwaukee Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo said, “He’s always talking to me, giving me advice on how to approach the season, taking care of my body, icing after games, trying different things like stretching and yoga.” “It was,” he said. “He will always be remembered and may his soul rest in peace.”
Philadelphia 76ers president Daryl Morey, who was with Mutombo for many years in Houston, was informed of his friend’s death during the team’s media day on Monday. Tears filled Morley’s eyes as he processed the news.
“There aren’t many players like him,” Morey said. “Just a great human being. When I was a new GM in this league, my first chance in Houston, he was someone I always went to. … Regarding his accomplishments on the court. There’s no need to say much about him. He’s an amazing person for what he did for Africa off the court. Rest in peace, Dikembe.”