‘His spirit was infectious’: Dikembe Mutombo and his legacy celebrated at NBA All-Star Weekend

SAN FRANCISCO – Hours before playing in the NBA All-Star Game, Stephen Curry’s voice cracked during the NBA Legends Brunch on Sunday morning when he took the podium to “honor the memories of those we lost this year.” Amidst giving posthumous honor to the likes of Al Attles, Bill Walton and Jerry West, the Golden State Warriors superstar paid respect to Dikembe Mutombo, who died Sept. 30, 2024.

“Dikembe was an eight-time All-Star and a four-time Defensive Player of the Year,” Curry said. “Dikembe’s trademark finger wag after blocking a shot was the exact opposite of his selfless and welcoming nature off the court. Dikembe was a true global ambassador and humanitarian.”

Mutombo played for the Denver Nuggets, Atlanta Hawks, Houston Rockets, Philadelphia 76ers, New York Knicks and New Jersey Nets during an 18-year NBA career that landed him in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2015. The 7-foot-2 center was a three-time All-NBA selection and was second in NBA history in blocks with 3,289. The former Georgetown University star’s No. 55 jersey is also retired by the Hawks and Nuggets. Mutombo was also named the NBA’s J. Walter Kennedy Citizenship Award winner twice for outstanding service and dedication to the community.

NBA commissioner Adam Silver unveiled the NBA Africa Dikembe Mutombo Humanitarian Award on Feb. 15 at the 10th annual NBA Africa All-Star Luncheon. The NBA described the award as “a new annual honor that will recognize a person or an organization that works to advance health, education or economic opportunity across the continent of Africa.” Following his retirement from the league in 2009, Mutombo, a native of the Democratic Republic of Congo, was the NBA’s first global ambassador, as appointed by late NBA commissioner David Stern.

“[Mutombo] was a constant fundraiser,” Silver said. “I used to sort of joke when we traveled with him, [and] he had his card as the NBA ambassador — these days when I take out my business card, young people say, ‘what is that piece of paper?’ But when people still had business cards, he would start with his NBA ambassador card, and then he’d wait until I walked away and out would come four other cards of all these other programs that he would be raising money for. He was so committed to it.

“His spirit was infectious. Part of it was just being a 7-footer. We all knew when we traveled with him, whether it was to Mumbai — a place where people might not know much about basketball or Dikembe Mutombo — I think because of his size, because of his laugh, just because of his presence, they instantly would know he was somebody important and he’d create those connections, something we all talk about so much these days.”

The NBA Africa Luncheon during All-Star weekend is usually an energetic event, with deejays spinning Afrobeats, people in colorful African garb and people from all over Africa in attendance. While such was the case this time, there was also a solemn mood of remembrance for Mutombo. In the back of the luncheon ballroom were pictures of Mutombo on all the teams he played with during his NBA career.

“It’s tough. Obviously, he is a legend, someone that has done not only stuff for basketball in Africa, but just for general African people,” NBA All-Star Pascal Siakam, a native of Cameroon, said. “He did so much good in the world. [We] Definitely lost a legend, someone that is going to be missed. I’m glad the NBA is honoring him because his legacy and the things that he has done is so amazing. [He is] Definitely someone as [a] young African player you look up to.”

While NBA fans worldwide love Mutombo, he is most beloved in Africa. In 1996, Mutombo paid the expenses for the Congo women’s national basketball team’s trip to the Olympic Games in Atlanta and bought their uniforms. In 1997, he established the Dikembe Mutombo Foundation, “whose mission is to improve the health, education and quality of life for the people in the Congo.”

Mutombo opened a $29 million hospital in 2009 near Congo’s capital city of Kinshasa, where 7.5 million people live in poverty. More than one million have already received care. Biamba Marie Mutombo Hospital, named in memory of Mutombo’s mother, has treated more than 200,000 people, according to Georgetown University.

Mutombo promoted basketball globally through Basketball Without Borders, including camps in Africa. He also played in the 2015 NBA Africa Game and attended the game in 2018. In 2020, the Dikembe Mutombo Foundation began construction on an elementary school in Congo, and through Mutombo Coffee, he sourced beans from African coffee farms from participants in its Women in Coffee Initiative. Mutombo was also an early investor in the Basketball Africa League.

Silver also said at the luncheon that the NBA will donate 55 courts in Africa in honor of Mutombo and his jersey number. The first court will be built in his native Kinshasa. NBA Africa has committed to build 1,000 courts on the continent over the next decade. During the luncheon, a video honoring Mutombo was played with tribute words from George W. Bush, Bill Clinton, Luol Deng, Didier Drogba, Patrick Ewing, Magic Johnson, Yao Ming and Steve Smith. There was also a video tribute by Mutombo’s son, Ryan.

“Nelson Mandela once said that Dikembe Mutombo was not only a friend to his people, but to all people…,” NBA Africa CEO Clare Akamazni said. “I know that all of you here share something in common. Your love for the game of basketball and your love for the continent of Africa. So, with today’s luncheon, we celebrate the best of basketball and the best of Africa through one man, Dikembe Mutombo. A friend to all of us.

“Like many of you, I was fortunate to interact with Dikembe on a few occasions. And his passion for people, for using the sport as a tool to uplift others and for Africa was simply contagious.”

Said Silver, ‘We miss him tremendously. We think a lot about his wife, Rose, and his children. This award was the least we can do.”