Awesome Mutombo: Protector of the Paint and his Homeland

VIDEO: Awesome tribute to the famous Dikembe Mutombo

As briefly mentioned Dikembe Mutombo hails from the Congo region of Africa. Dikembe came to the United State through joint efforts by himself, the United State Agency for International Development (USAID), and Georgetown University Hoyas head basketball coach John Thompson. These three entities are responsible for providing opportunities for Dikembe Mutombo which he has responsibly taken advantage of in a manner that has allowed him to give back tremendously.

While most seven foot basketball players who arrive on campus for their freshmen year have making it to the NBA as their number one career goal Mutombo had a different set of priorities when he first arrived on the Washington D.C. campus of Georgetown University. Mutombo was playing basketball in the Big East conference not merely as an avenue for generating exposure for the NBA Draft but rather as a means of paying for his education in his attempt to become a medical doctor.

Top 5 small forwards in NBA History:

5) Scottie Pippen – Yeah I know that he played with Michael Jordan, so it’s not like everybody was worried about him.  But Jordan never won a championship until Pippen joined the Bulls.  I think that pretty much says it all. He was also a dynamite one on one defender.

4) James Worthy – Again it’s hard to get much recognition when you are playing with players named Kareem and Magic. But it was James that was the glue to the whole team.  Just look back at those classic Lakers-Celtics battles.  James put his footprints all over those games.

3) Dominique Wilkins – The human highlight reel was a one of a kind offensive player.  He literally played ABOVE the rim. One of the greatest high flyers to ever play the games.  He didn’t just take it to the hole.  He ran through who ever got in his way.

2) Julius Erving – Who knows where the NBA would be without Dr. J. He’s the reason why Sportscenter was invented.  Not only does he have many of the greatest dunks ever caught on tape, he was a force to reckon with.

1) Larry Bird – To say he was a great shooter is kind of like saying the ocean is vast.  He had an eagle eye that made him from deadly from any part of the court.  He was also the most crafty player out on the court.  If there was a way to get a basket, Bird would find a way.

Iconic symbols never die, and they cling to our affections like a childhood memory. So when it comes to the wag, Mutombo is getting more than he ever gave, all these years later, because people don’t forget and can’t resist. Yet it’s curious how this famously charming greeting perfectly captures who he was on the basketball court while going totally counter to who he was, and still is, away from basketball.

But the finger wag is the absolute wrong symbol to attach to Mutombo the humanitarian. He does not block, or reject, or shut out or discourage those in need. He was an eight-time NBA All-Star and a four-time Defensive Player of the Year and come September 11, a member of the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame. And yet none of that weighs more than his aid for the impoverished in Africa and elsewhere. To the starving children his money and fundraising has helped feed, to the patients his hospital in his homeland of The Democratic Republic of the Congo has cured, Mutombo raises an index finger and bends it back and forth. As if to say: Come to Mutombo.

The Hall of Fame is getting someone who’ll bring plenty to Springfield, Mass., besides basketball. But make no mistake; basketball is why Mutombo is headed there. The election caught Mutombo a bit by surprise, because he thought the Hall heavily favored those who scored points by the bucketful.