Dikembe Mutombo (born June 25, 1966, Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo) is a Congolese-American basketball player who was one of the best defenders in National Basketball Association (NBA) history and was also noted for his philanthropic efforts. He was already 21 when he left the Democratic Republic of Congo (then known as Zaire) to attend Georgetown in 1987. Mutombo spent 18 seasons in the NBA, playing for Denver, Atlanta, Houston, Philadelphia, New York and the then-New Jersey Nets.
For high school, Dikembe Mutombo went to Boboto College in Kinshasa to lay the groundwork for his medical career as the classes were more challenging there. He played football and participated in martial arts. At about 16, Mutombo decided to concentrate on his basketball career at the encouragement of his father and brother due to his height.
At 21, Mutombo enrolled at Georgetown in 1987 on an academic scholarship after Herman Henning, an administrator at the United States Embassy in Kinshasa, the Republic of the Congo’s capital and a former high school basketball coach, sent word of him to John Thompson, coach of the vaunted Georgetown program.
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After playing only intramural basketball during freshman year while gaining fluency in English, Mutombo abandoned pre-med courses, a concession to the demands of major college basketball. He switched to a double major in linguistics and diplomacy. He spoke French, English, Spanish, Portuguese and five African languages.
Though his basketball skills were initially raw, Mutombo trained during summers with Patrick Ewing, a Georgetown alumnus and N.B.A. All Star center, and a teammate, Alonzo Mourning, another center and budding N.B.A. star. By his senior season, Mutombo averaged 15.2 points, 12.2 rebounds and 4.7 blocked shots per game.
The Congo native grew the game internationally as the league’s first global ambassador. He was integral in Basketball Without Borders, helping set up infrastructure for the organization in Africa, and he was a massive supporter and global ambassador for the Special Olympics.
On top of everything Mutombo was doing, he put his money where his mouth and heart were. His mother passed away from a stroke in 1997, which prompted him to fund nearly $20 million in opening a 300-bed hospital in his hometown in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo. It took 10 years to build and opened in 2007.
Mutombo, a Basketball Hall of Famer who was one of the best defensive players in NBA history and a longtime global ambassador for the game, died Monday from brain cancer, the league announced. He was 58.
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