By Cynthia Charlene Greason
FROM WIKIPEDIA COMMONS
Dikembe Mutombo Mpolondo Mukamba Jean-Jacques Wamutombo (June 25, 1966 – September 30, 2024) was a Congolese-American professional basketball player. He played 18 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Nicknamed “Mount Mutombo” for his defensive prowess, he is commonly regarded as one of the greatest shot-blockers and defensive players of all time. Outside of basketball, he is known for his humanitarian work.
A 7-foot-2-inch (2.18 m) center, Mutombo moved to the United States from the Democratic Republic of the Congo at age 21 to play college basketball for the Georgetown Hoyas. In 1991, the Denver Nuggets chose him with the fourth overall pick of the NBA draft. During his NBA career, he played for six teams, in the NBA Finals for the Philadelphia 76ers in 2001 and for the New Jersey Nets in 2003. He received the NBA Defensive Player of the Year Award four times, tied with Ben Wallace and Rudy Gobert for the most awards. He led the NBA in blocked shots three times, led the league in rebounds twice, and was named to eight All-Star teams. On January 10, 2007, he ranks second among NBA career leaders in blocked shots.
At the conclusion of the 2009 NBA playoffs, Mutombo retired and his number 55 jersey was retired by the Nuggets and Atlanta Hawks. He was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2015.
On October 15, 2022, Mutombo announced that he was undergoing treatment for a brain tumor. He died in Atlanta from brain cancer surrounded by his family on September 30, 2024, at the age of 58.
