"Mutombo believes that God has given him this opportunity to do great things for his country, especially in health care." - Tom Keefe, president of the International Medical Equipment Collaborative

Biography:

Dikembe Mutombo Mpolondo Mukamba Jean Jacque Wamutombo was born on June 6, 1966. The son of a schoolmaster, Dikembe knew he wanted to be a doctor since the age of 9. Considering the coniditions in Kinshasa, Congo, the town of his birth, this is a admirable goal. When he was old enough, his father sent him off to Georgetown University. With an academic scholarship waiting for him, Dikembe's father told him not to come home until he had an education.

Enrolled as a pre-med, college started off well enough for Mutombo. He was quickly noticed by John Thompson, the basketball coach for Georgetown. However, it would be hard to not notice this 7 foot tall African man with a deep bellowing voice. John talked with Dikembe for several weeks, before Mutombo agreed to play basketball with the college team. Having had other big men before Dikembe, Thompson knew what to do when he starting molding Mutombo into the NBA star he would become. Dikembe, knowing that his future would be on the court, as opposed to beside the operating table, switched his major to double major in both Diplomacy and Linguistics. He graduated college in 1991.

Later in that year, Mutombo was drafted as the fourth overal pick in the 1991 NBA Draft. He was chosen be the then (and still) struggling Denver Nuggets. His tall stature made him a dominating force at center. While Dikembe was the first Nugget to pull down 1,000 rebounds in one season, he was not enough to turn around the Nugget's poor performances. When his contract wore out, he said goodbye to Denver and hello to Hotlanta. He signed a large contract with Atlanta, and donned the red jersey of the Hawks.

Even though he changed jerseys, Dikembe would not change his playing style. He continued to be a dominating presence in the paint. From the 95-96 season to the 97-98, Mutombo lead the league in blocked shots. He is the only player to lead the league in blocks for three consecutive seasons. On February 2, 2001 Mutombo and teammate Roshown McLeod were both traded to the Philadelphia 76ers for Theo Ratliff, Toni Kukoc, Nazr Mohammed and Juan "Pepe" Sanchez. Dikembo only played one season with the 76ers before being traded again, this time to the New Jersey Nets for Kieth Van Horn and Todd MacCulloch. The Nets were in the middle of a playoff push, and wanted a strong inside presence to balance out Jason Kidd's amazing play at point guard.

Again, Dikembe would not see much time on the court. Not due to a loss of playing ability, or the presence of a better player, but for something entirely different. During a game with the epitome of NBA crappiness, the Los Angeles Clippers, Mutombo was hit on the wrist by Eric Piatkowski, severly hurting his wrist and causing him to miss 3 months so he could heal properly. Later in that season, Mutombo missed four more games because of the untimely death of his brother.

Lucky for Dikembe, the Nets still had plenty of basketball to play that season. Even though he re-aggrivated his wrist injury in the playoffs, he was still able to make appearances at the Eastern Conference finals, and the 2003 NBA finals. Even though he was getting on in age (as basketball players go), and losing his mobility, he always played his hardest while on the floor. During his first game back, Dikembe was on the floor, diving after a loose ball within 2 minutes of stepping onto the court!

The Nets lost to the San Antonio Spurs in the finals, and while his team might have lost off the court, Dikembe has been busy making winners off the court. He adopted two of his nieces and nephews and brought the four of them to America so they could receive a better education. However, his charity is not just limited to family members. Dikembe provided funding and equipment so Congo's women's basketball team could travel and play at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta. He is the voice of several public service announcements encouraging central African parents to immunize their children against polio. On January 14, 1999, Dikembe spoke in front of the Global Meeting of Generations, which was held in Washington, D.C. One year later, he received the President's Service Award, the highest honor one could get for charity work and volunteer service.

"When you take the elevator up to reach the top, please don't forget to send the elevator back down, so that someone else can take it to the top ... This is my way of sending the elevator down." - Dikembe Mutombo

Dikembe Mutombo never became a doctor, but that didn't stop him from improving the healthcare in his native country. In 1997, he founded the Dikembe Mutombo Foundation. The purpose of this foundation is to help healthcare and the overall well being of humans in central Africa. Specifically, this group delivers health care services, educates and provides activities which display a healthier life-style, research diseases found in a tropical climate and promote activities that have a positive impact on the health of individuals and societies. In his hometown of Kinshasa, the DMF is building a brand new, $14 million dollar hospital. Over one fourth of the price for this hospital is being paid for by Dikembe Mutombo. Kinda makes the $50 bucks you gave to charity last year look pathetic, eh?

Statistics:

Number: #55
Height: 7-2
Weight: 265 lbs.
Position: C

8 time All-Star
Defensive player of the year: 1995, 97, 98, 2001
Fun Fact: Dikembe Mutombo can fluently speak 9 languages!

Career Totals:

                                                                                     Rebounds
YR 	TM   G  GS  MIN    FG     FG%  3P  3P%     FT    FT% STL  BLK  TO  PF  DQ  OFF  DEF  TOT  AST  PTS 
91-92	Den 71	 0 2716 428-869  .493 0-0 .000  321-500 .642  43  210 252 273   1  316  554  870  156 1177
92-93	Den 82  82 3029 398-781  .510 0-0 .000  335-492 .681  43  287 216 284   5  344  726 1070  147 1131
93-94	Den 82  82 2853 365-642  .569 0-1 .000  256-439 .583  59  336 206 262   2  286  685  971  127  986
94-95	Den 82  82 3100 349-628  .556 0-0 .000  248-379 .654  40  321 192 284   2  319  710 1029  113  946
95-96	Den 74  74 2713 284-569  .499 0-1 .000  246-354 .695  38  332 150 258   4  249  622  871  108  814
96-97	Atl 80  80 2973 380-721  .527 0-0 .000  306-434 .705  49  264 186 249   3  268  661  929  110 1066
97-98	Atl 82  82 2917 399-743  .537 0-0 .000  303-452 .670  34  277 168 254   1  276  656  932   82 1101
98-99	Atl 50  50 1829 173-338  .512 0-0 .000  195-285 .684  16  147  94 145   2  192  418  610   57  541
99-00	Atl 82  82 2984 322-573  .562 0-0 .000  298-421 .708  27  269 174 248   3  304  853 1157  105  942
00-01	Atl 49  49 1716 169-354  .477 0-0 .000  107-154 .695  20  137  92 139   2  188  505  693   54  445
00-01   Phi 26  26  875 100-202  .495 0-0 .000  104-137 .759   9   66  52  65   0  119  203  322   22  304
01-02	Phi 80  80 2907 321-641  .501 0-0 .000  278-364 .764  29  190 156 242   2  254  609  863   83  920
02-03	Njn 24  16  514  49-131  .374 0-0 .000   40-55  .727   4   37  34  54   0   54   99  153   19  138

                                                                                      Rebounds     
         G   GS  MIN      FG     FG%  3P  3P%     FT     FT% STL  BLK  TO   PF  DQ  OFF  DEF  TOT   AST  PTS        
Totals: 864 785	31126 3737-7192 520  0-2 .000 3037-4466	.680 411 2873 1972 2757 27 3169 7301 10470 1183	10511

Career Averages:

G GS MIN FG FG% 3P 3P% FT FT% STL BLK TO PF DQ OFF DEF TOT AST PTS Totals 864 785 36.0 4.3-8.3 .520 0.0-0.0 .000 3.5-5.2 .680 0.5 3.3 2.3 3.2 0.0 3.7 8.5 12.2 1.4 12.2

DMF Contact Info:

Dikembe Mutombo Foundation, Inc.
4413 Northside Pkwy., Suite 137
Atlanta, GA 30327

Telephone: (404) 262-2109
Email: info@dmf.org

Sources:
www.time.com/time/europe/hero/mutombo.html
sports.espn.go.com/nba/players/profile?statsId=425
www.infoplease.com/ipsa/A0003935.html
www.philly.com/mld/philly/sports/basketball/5514091.htm
www.un.org/ecosocdev/geninfo/afrec/vol12no4/baobab.htm
mysite.verizon.net/vzn05m7m/nba/mutombo.html