Digital Sports Desk

While We’re Young (Ideas) on the Late, Great Mutombo

By TERRY LYONS, Editor of Digital Sports Desk

BOSTON – Georgetown University’s basketball program was founded in the Fall of 1906. So fittingly, they played their first basketball game that winter, beating the University of Virginia 22-11. Some 43 years later McDonough Gymnasium would open its doors on the campus on the Hill that overlooks the District on the Hill in our nations’s capital.

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Some 22 years later, Georgetown was smart enough to hire John Thompson, Jr. away from St. Anthony’s High School (on the corner of 12th and Monroe Streets, NE) and that’s about when I started to get “pissed.”

In about 1975, Georgetown began to win big basketball games, such as the ECAC South’s annual tournament, beating the likes of GW, American, and eventually taking it up a notch to win games against tough teams and glory programs like Syracuse University. In 1979, it turned serious.

Georgetown, together with the previously mentioned Syracuse, with Providence College, Seton Hall, Connecticut, Boston College and my very own St. John’s University, formed the BIG EAST Conference. The new digs came about in my junior year of college. Basketball at St. John’s – and all the Northeastern United States – would never be the same again.

John Thompson Jr., a one-time back-up to Bill Russell while both were collecting NBA Championship rings here in Boston, became known as “Big John.” He had quite a knack for recruiting good players. My friend, Steve Martin out of NOLA, comes to mind. Martin was the man who let me peek inside the HOYAS.

Georgetown landed the best players. They kept on doing it, too. John Duran and Craig Shelton in the ‘80s, and Sleepy Floyd a year later. Then, they landed one of the greatest 7-footers of our lifetime in Patrick Ewing, recruited right here out of Cambridge Rindge and Latin High School. They kept coming: Bill Martin, Charles Smith, Reggie Williams, Perry McDonald, Alonzo Mourning, Othella Harrington, Allen Iverson, Victor Page, Jeff Green, and Roy Hibbert who was yet another 7-footer.

Right smack in the middle of that recruiting bonanza, say 1988-1991, right out of Léopoldville, Democratic Republic of the Congo, coming to America was 7-foot-2 Dikembe Mutombo, an honorable mention All-American but two-time BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Year.

The Ewing-Mutombo-Mourning combination was a little too much to take, as a St. John’s fan. It was one thing to see Williams shoot the lights out, or Iverson and Page run your team off the floor, but to have the Ewing-Mutombo-Mourning block every single shot from the bucket at the 7th Avenue end of the Garden to the 8th Avenue end was devastating.

Mutombo played only three years as he made his mark at Georgetown. He was selected in the first round of the 1991 NBA Draft by the Denver Nuggets, the fourth overall selection of that draft. Only Larry Johnson (Charlotte), Kenny Anderson (New Jersey) and Billy Owens (Sacramento then Golden State) went before the big 7-footer – the great Dick Vitale called Mutombo and his peers of 7-feet+ – “aircraft carriers.” Mutombo made his NBA home in the Great Rocky Mountains.

Of course the 6-10 Mourning overlapped a bit (1988-92) and the spectrum of memories run from the try-outs for the 1988 USA Basketball Men’s Olympics team to Zo going No. 2 in the 1992 NBA Draft, a single draft slot after Shaquille O’Neal.

Suffice to say, there was some HOYA SAXA swearing coming from the St. John’s sections of Madison Square Garden while Patrick-Alonzo-and-Dikembe were getting it done. But, it all changed in 1999-2000 when Big John retired and his longtime right hand man Craig Esherick took over for six relatively successful years, going 103-74 (.582) as compared to his predecessor’s 27 years, 596-239 (.714) mark with 20 NCAA appearances in his 27 seasons.

Georgetown returned to earth and, so sadly, so has Dikembe Mutombo this week, almost two years after receiving the terrible diagnosis of brain cancer which took his life at age 58.

Dikembe’s on-court accolades are long and impressive, just as he was. He was a six-time Defensive Player of the Year – four in the NBA and two in the BIG EAST Conference. He was an eight-time NBA All-Star in his 19-year NBA career. He led the NBA in rebounding twice and in shots blocked three times. Mutombo was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2015. Yet, his on-court resume might be half of what he was able to accomplish off the court, and in his native land of Africa. His foundation helped build a $29 million, 300-bed full scale hospital in Kinshasa, Congo, the capital city, and that facility has treated more than a half-million people regardless of their ability to pay for care. It opened in September of 2006 and was named Biamba Marie Mutombo Hospital, in memory of his mother, who died of a stroke in 1997.

The goodwill efforts didn’t start and end there. This column could list 1000 things Mutombo accomplished, shared, willed to existence, donated, and spent time and his own money to better the lives of others. Mutombo was a very frequent traveller, and contributor to the NBA’s Basketball w/o Borders program. He built schools, assisted the NBA and the USA Dept. of State in Goodwill missions and became a citizen of the United States in 2006.

He was asked to attend and be recognized by President George W. Bush at the State of the Union Address of 2007 and President Obama’s Inauguration a couple years later. Dikembe’s global ambassador nature worked on both sides of the aisle. He was recognized with an honorary doctorate at Georgetown and later honored by Johns Hopkins University’s School of Public Health where he was awarded the Goodermote Humanitarian Award “for his efforts to reduce polio globally as well as his work improving the health of neglected and underserved populations in the Democratic Republic of Congo.” His efforts were beyond impressive, done with an energy rarely seen in any human being.

NBA Commissioner Adam Silver issued the following statement, informing many of Mutombo’s friends and colleagues of his death:

“Dikembe Mutombo was simply larger than life. On the court, he was one of the greatest shot blockers and defensive players in the history of the NBA. Off the floor, he poured his heart and soul into helping others.

“There was nobody more qualified than Dikembe to serve as the NBA’s first Global Ambassador. He was a humanitarian at his core. He loved what the game of basketball could do to make a positive impact on communities, especially in his native Democratic Republic of the Congo and across the continent of Africa. I had the privilege of traveling the world with Dikembe and seeing first-hand how his generosity and compassion uplifted people. He was always accessible at NBA events over the years – with his infectious smile, deep booming voice and signature finger wag that endeared him to basketball fans of every generation.

“Dikembe’s indomitable spirit continues on in those who he helped and inspired throughout his extraordinary life. I am one of the many people whose lives were touched by Dikembe’s big heart and I will miss him dearly. On behalf of the entire NBA family, I send my deepest condolences to Dikembe’s wife, Rose, and their children; his many friends; and the global basketball community which he truly loved and which loved him back.”

Mutombo’s family issued quite a statement after his death. It read:

“We are deeply grateful for the outpouring of love and condolences we have received from people around the world following the passing of our beloved Dikembe. Dikembe was a servant of God, a wonderful husband, father, humanitarian, and athlete. He touched countless lives on and off the court with his generosity, compassion, and unwavering dedication to improving the lives of others. Your kind words and condolences during the past two years, especially this past week, have brought us immense comfort during this difficult time.

We want to acknowledge and thank the Multi-D Team within the Piedmont Brain Tumor Center, Shepherd Rehab Hospital (Atlanta), NBA Physician Dr. Leroy Sims, consulting physicians, and colleagues worldwide, including: Dr. Erin Dunbar, Dr. Curtis J. Coley II, Dr. Adam Nowlan, Dr. Tyler Kenning, Dr. Ford Voxx, Dr. Fadia Payal, Dr. Jarred Potter; and a host of other healthcare professionals: nurses, therapists, and home-care providers, particularly Charles Benton, who remained by Dike’s side these last months. We also want to thank our NBA and Georgetown families and friends for their love and support.

In the coming days we will be holding a very private service for family and then working together with the NBA to hold a larger event at a later date to celebrate Dikembe’s extraordinary life and legacy.

In lieu of flowers, we encourage donations to the Dikembe Mutombo Memorial Fund which will benefit the causes and organizations that Dikembe dedicated his life to supporting.

Thank you once again for your kindness, understanding, and continued respect for our privacy as we navigate this profound loss.

With heartfelt appreciation,

Rose, Carrie, Jean-Jacques, and Ryan Mutombo

To best explain the world of Dikembe Mutombo, I turn the column over to former Houston Chronicle (and former Philly) columnist, Mr. Fran Blinebury, to better tell of the life and times of the NBA’s all-time greatest Ambassador to the World, the late Dikembe Mutombo. Fran approved the utilization of his post.

BY FRAN BLINEBURY, former columnist Houston Chronicle

So many memories of a man with so many names — Dikembe Mutombo Mpolondo Mukamba Jean-Jacque Wamutombo.

The defiant competitor with the shake of the head and the long, wagging finger after he blocked yet another of those thousands of shots.

The practically delirious young man with the wide smile rolling happily on the court holding the basketball over his head after leading the Denver Nuggets to a spectacular upset of top-seeded Seattle in the first round of the 1994 NBA Playoffs.

Mutombo passed away on Monday at age 58 from brain cancer.

My own favorite memory is from half a world away, in a dusty corner of South Africa’s impoverished Soweto Township, where dozens of young children — most of whom are HIV-positive — have dressed Mutombo in the colorful garb and feathers of a Zulu warrior, then handed him a spear and are watching him comically attempt to dance to the song they are trying to sing through their giggling.

“What do you think?” he asked in a bellow of laughter. “Does Dikembe Mutombo have rhythm?”

Truth is, Mutombo has always had the rhythm of the ocean, the pulse of the planet upon which he’s felt obligated to do more than just walk across for a handful of decades.

Those kids at a place called Ithuteng Trust that day had thrown open their arms to a group representing the NBA’s Basketball Without Borders program for giving them their time and embraced Mutombo for giving them his love. The little dance took place on the brown dirt lawn of a brand new dormitory that had been built with the assistance of Mutombo’s latest gift of $100,000.

“It might be the first time many of them have ever slept in a clean bed,” he said. “It is hardly a sacrifice for me.”

Since he came out of Georgetown University and into the NBA 33 years ago, Mutombo has been known for three things: blocked shots, that distinctive voice that sounds like the Cookie Monster swallowed James Earl Jones and a sheer joy for life.

He founded the Dikembe Mutombo Foundation in 1997 to benefit the people of his homeland of Kinshasha in the Democratic Republic of Congo. In 2007, he opened the Biamba Marie Mutombo Hospital and Research Center there, named after his mother.

And all along the way, he never lost his passion for playing the game and competing at the highest level. At all of his NBA stops in Denver, Atlanta, Philadelphia, New Jersey, New York and Houston, he’s been part Pied Piper and part General Patton.

When Mutombo signed on for this fifth season with the Houston Rockets on Dec. 31, 2008 he was re-entering a locker room that had become fractious and divided with rumors of rifts between Tracy McGrady and Yao Ming and (then) Ron Artest (Metta World Peace to Metta Sandiford-Artest.

“I will take care of this,” Mutombo pronounced. “Maybe I will have to grab some heads and bang them together. But I will fix the situation.”

And even though he played just 96 minutes in nine games, the Rockets’ wounds were healed and they finished the regular season on a 33-14 tear. Then he played 18 minutes and pulled down nine rebounds as the Rockets won the opener of their NBA Playoffs series with the Blazers. He took a horrible fall in Game 2, tearing up his knee and forcing the end to an 18-year NBA career.

Mutombo was an eight-time All-Star who won the NBA’s Defensive Player of the Year award four times and stands second on the NBA’s career blocks list with 3,289.

But if you wanted to talk numbers, the ones he’d brag about were the direct numbers he had to NBA commissioner David Stern and to the White House. He was a guest of President George W. Bush at the State of the Union address in 2008 and was invited to President Barack Obama‘s inauguration.

He was part world ambassador and part basketball mentor.

When Yao got into the habit of drawing charges in the middle of the season, Mutombo chastised him that it was no honorable way for a big man to play the game.

“Maybe that’s why China never won the Asian championship,” he said laughing loudly. “You block the shot.”

When rookie Anthony Randolph of the Golden State Warriors kept driving to the basket to challenge, Mutombo repeatedly blocked his shots and offered advice.

“I told him he doesn’t know about Dikembe Mutombo, he needs to watch ESPN Classic,” he said with the raspy roar.

He’s always been proud of his accomplishments and his connections.

Once when Mutombo was hit with a technical foul for complaining from his seat on the bench, he held up his cell phone in the locker room. “I have commissioner Stern on speed dial,” he said giggling. “I will have to tell him that the NBA doesn’t need my $1,000 in fine money. There are hungry kids in Africa and he’d be taking food out of their mouths.”

When he returned from the Obama inauguration, I asked him if he could see Oprah from his seat on the steps of the U.S. Capitol.

“Are you kidding?” he roared as the smile ran a fastbreak across his face. “I’m pretty sure she was sitting behind me.”

As Yogi Berra might have said: half humanitarian, half teacher and half comedian.

All Dikembe Mutombo Mpolondo Mukamba Jean-Jacque Wamutombo. One of a kind.

Editor’s Note: Fran certainly has a way with words, and some of us, noted comedian Steve Martin … “just don’t have way.”

HERE NOW, THE NOTES: Did anyone notice that this past Tuesday CNN and Reuters each began a paywall program hoping to generate additional revenue for the costly business of news production. CNN came in with a big red SUBSCRIBE button on its homepage with a full year, all access deal at $29.99. A monthly subscription is $3.99, so the full year saves the client 37% while the Newsie makes a pretty penny. Searching for a broadcast/online CNN subscriber discount was useless. … In the FAQs, CNN noted the news subscription does not include access to the CNN broadcast news channel and highlighted the fact “unlimited access to articles is now a subscriber-only benefit. Registered CNN users still have access to a limited number of free articles as well as newsletters, follow topics, and article commenting.” … Thanks Zaz.

REUTERS: While Reuters is a top notch news gatherer and deserves some $ for the work they do on a global bases, most of the wire service (AP, Reuters) copy is readily available via free news sites or it might be featured on a site you’re already paying a steep fee for national/international (or local) news. … In case you’re wondering, I pay for: The Boston Globe, The New York Times/The Athletic, Newsday, The Washington Post and Wall Street Journal. … Come November 10th, there will be a roster cut-down and massive purge. The Boston Globe will remain.

MAN UNITED: The skies of Manchester are not friendly for Manchester United team manager Erik ten Hag when his side travels to Aston Villa today. Earlier this week, centre-back Harry Maguire threw his coach, Erik ten Hag, a four-day lifeline with a game-tying goal in stoppage time that secured a 3-3 draw in the UEFA Europa League against FC Porto. Maguire’s fate could be on the line as ten Hag’s club has managed only three victories and suffered two awful losses, each 3-0 home defeats, against Liverpool and Tottenham in the Premier League. Victory has charmed Man United against Fulham, Southampton and during a League One non-conference with Barnsley in the Carabao Cup.